MAPL
by Planeshunter
Summary: This is the story of four huntswoman aspirants. How they got together, what crazy things they were dragged into by her leader, their interactions with other teams… Basically a re-telling of the series, where Team JNPR gets replaced by Team MAPL. Yeah, yeah, I'm sorry Pyrrha fans, I'm actually one of you, but no Invincible Girl this time. [UP FOR ADOPTION - Check the last chapter]
1. Presenting MAPL

**Konnichiwa, Konnichiwa! Planeshunter here!**

 **Imagine a Remnant where the one cheating his way into beacon was no good-willed, insecure boy, but an overconfident and lousy girl bearing a striking resemblance with Yang Xiao Long. Where the four times winner of the Mistral tournament wasn't any Invincible Girl, but a certain Seven Coloured Puppeteer. With no "basically a ninja" + happy-go lucky hammergirl combo to be not together-together. Instead we would have a reclusive and cold bookworm, and maybe a flower fairy with an insane obsession for spring.**

 **Maybe some other characters would get swapped too, who knows? But this is the story of four huntresses aspirants. How they got together, what crazy things they were dragged into by her leader, their interactions with other teams… Basically a re-telling of the series, where Team JNPR gets replaced by Team MAPL.**

 **I'm sure FF is full of this kind of stories, so I can only hope mine is interesting enough to grab someone's attention...**

 **That said, MAPL** **始まります** **!**

* * *

 **Presenting M**

There's an intruder creeping through Beacon grounds tonight. It's silhouette hovers at low height and, maybe because of the scarce light, closely resembles a witch flying in her broom. Little by little, taking advantage of the many shadows to hide from wary eyes, it closes in to the main building, dodging both people and machines. Getting here undetected is already a remarkable feat, now's when the real fun begins. Slowly rising towards a very specific window, it steals a peek inside. As expected, this entrance is overseen by an unavoidable camera, so there's simply no way to sneak in anymore.

After some rustling sounds, a thin laser projects some light over our intruder, revealing a long dress and a pointy hat on long, wavy hair. It also makes the camera, and the window in front of it, explode unceremoniously.

A confident smile paints the face of the girl. Here starts the real deal. With the destruction of the camera, the alarms have activated. She only has few minutes to do her deed, cause some believable incident to cover it out, and get away before the place gets swarmed.

The first is easy. With the shards of glass still falling, she rushes in, flying straight into the building's heart. She only has to drop the multi-purpose Nitori X tool close to the nearest terminal. It will take care of the rest by itself. Now for some convincing show… How about trying to break into the headmaster's office?

The challenge makes another smile creep up her face.

[...]

Well, She obviously wasn't up to the challenge. Sitting now in a well lighted room with only two chairs and a desk, her appearance is as striking as expected. She wears a black witch hat adorned with a huge purple ribbon and a matching long dress under a white apron. We could say her golden hair flows down her back like a wavy cascade, but some hairs just don't work that way. The aforementioned bush of rebel locks simply lacks the elegance for that. Her skin is rough and uncared, the kind of those who spends little or no time caring about it., and her eyes present a peculiar yellow tone, that might seem sickly at first glance, but shine with life and intelligence.

The man in front of her has been skipping through his notes for a while now.

-" _Marisa Kirisame_ " -The name, spoken in a calm tone, finally breaks the silence, making her fix her amber eyes in the man- " _Orphan since the age of 5, runaway from her foster family with 9. There your tracks vanish, you are officially still missing, but the authorities assume you're either dead or gangster fodder. And yet here you are, 8 years later. Sneaking into my academy, destroying private property, creating false records in our database, trying to get into my office… What am I supposed to do with you?_ "

-" _Dunno, gimme a medal?_ " -Her eyes sparkle with glee, far from embarrassing her, enumerating her deeds only fuels her ego- " _Ya gotta admit I did a friggin' good job (ze)!_ "

-" _You got surrounded and tried to break through five walls of solid concrete to get away_ "

-" _And I dang fine broke thru three (ze), ya didn't gimme time for the other two, gramps!_ "

-" _Then you tried to put me down and failed splendidly, your broom is quite the original weapon, by the way._ "

Here she blushes slightly, but tries to conceal it getting more aggressive.

-" _Well, sorry for not being able to overpower the friggin' headmaster of the most friggin' prestigious huntsmen academy in the whole friggin Remnant (ze)!_ " -The old man reacts only by rising an eyebrow and taking a sip from his mug, somehow that effectively hushes her- " _Ya gotta admit I almost got ya with that last trick._ "

-" _A flashbang at close-quarter followed by a cloaking semblance, you might've been able to fly away if you didn't let go of your broom at the last second._ "

-" _Hehe, yeah. Ya know, problem with flashbangs in close-quarters?... ya get dizzy as hell too…_ "

This time the headmaster doesn't answer, he just stands there, casually sipping from his mug, while looking at her over his sunglasses. It finally gets on her nerves, and she asks:

-" _Well? What happens now?_ "

-" _Nothing, given your… special circumstances, you'll be treated as a guest until the school year begins. Then you'll be assigned a team and a room, like everyone else._ "

-" _Huh?_ "

-" _Didn't you want a medal? You got my attention, but you'll need to try harder to get my praise._ "

[...]

As she leaves the room, still wondering what exactly just happened, she overhears someone saying.

-" _The headmaster should stop recruiting the kids from jail…_ "

* * *

 **Presenting A**

 _-Darkness-_

Mistral is the public. This, her performance.

 _-Breathe-_

This is no tournament, just another stage.

 _-Breathe-_

She is no "favorite", she's the artist.

 _-Breathe-_

There's no opponent, just secondary players.

 _-Breathe-_

There's no pressure, only the spotlight.

 _-Breathe-_

"Victory" is not enough, the aim is "Elegance".

 _-Breathe-_

There are no weapons, only friends.

 _-Breathe-_

 _tug_

The darkness dissipates as the girl opens her eyes. In front of her, a mirror reflects the perfect features of her doll-like face. Round, blue eyes, lacking any expression. Pale and clear skin that looks like porcelain. Gloss golden hair, styled in short locks and held in place with a red ribbon.

She stares at her own reflection, without showing any emotion, until she feels another tug. Then she looks down, where a doll is pulling the frills of her blue and white dress. Behind it, another one is carrying a book with metal reinforcements, that seems heavier than it's tiny bearer.

-" _Oh, it's time to go?_ " -As the doll who looks almost alive nods, the girl who looks like a doll finally smiles- " _Thanks, Shanghai, Hourai._ "

[...]

-" _Aaaaaaaaaand that's another victory for our Seven Colored Puppeteer, Alice Margatroid! She did it, ladies and gentlemen! This is her fourth tournament and a new record!_ "

The roar of the multitude drowns the voice of the announcer. The show is over, and the favourite didn't let them down.

-" _[...] but, as the expert, what would you say is our champion's most remarkable feature?_ "

-" _Well, Rob, since you ask… I would say it's her elegance. I mean, she doesn't only win, no matter the opponent, she never seems to lose her cool,_ " - _There's no opponent, only secondary players_ \- " _and always performs beautifully_ " - _Victory's not enough, the goal is Elegance_ \- " _Sometimes I wonder if she has ever bothered to try hard._ "

 _If you try your hardest, you have already lost._

It's hard to tell, but as the army of little dolls bow with her, even back before, when they tugged her dress and handed her the book, the fingers of the girl who looks like a doll never stop making small movements, directing every action of the dolls who look alive.

Because it's all make-believe, and the girl of perfect features is completely alone.

* * *

 **Presenting P**

A perfectly brewed tea steaming in her hand, a night-infinite library extending around her. A fascinating book full of unknown, turning into knowledge as she scans through the lines of text. Can a girl ask for anything else? Is she dead and in heaven?

-" _Patchouli-sama._ " -The perfectly elegant voice of the house's head maid interrupts her reverie- " _Dinner is ready, Ojou-sama insists in her invitation._ "

The girl closes the tome with an exaggerated sigh. She doesn't mind dinner with her friend, even enjoys it, to be honest. But she hates to leave a reading halfways. What's wrong with eating after finishing the book? Hopefully, her friends won't have any problem with her bringing the book there.

[...]

She was wrong.

Being scolded by a twelve years old girl felt as embarrassing as one can imagine. Even worse with her nine years old little sister repeating everything, and the perfectly elegant smile of the head maid in the background. What's more, she has found her friend tense during the whole dinner, awfully silent and studying her with poorly disguised anxiety. She's no expert in social interactions, but you don't need to be a genius to smell trouble in the air.

-" _How was your evening, Patche?_ "

-" _Interesting_ " -only after the desserts are served, does she attempt some small talk, suspicious…- " _I won't bore you with the details, but this book..._ "

-" _Other book? Patche, you have done nothing but reading since you finished school._ "

-" _I can't very well go play in the garden, sorry for having a frail body._ "

-" _Staying in a dusty library is bad for your asthma! You need to get out!_ "

-" _Thanks for worrying, but I can manage._ "

-" _No, you can't!_ " -Her friend stands, hitting the table and knocking down some glasses- " _What do you plan on doing next year? You can't possibly stay cooped inside forever!_ "

-" _Well, now that you mention it…_ " -The tone irritates Patchouli. Mostly because, deep down, she knows she's right- " _That's exactly what I plan to do._ "

-" _Well, you can't. You are one of the best talents I have ever known, and I'm not going to let you rot in MY house. You are enrolled in Beacon, I received the acceptance letter today._ "

-" _Are you kicking me out? After everything I did for you?_ "

-" _Patche_ " -The eyes of her friend bear a strange intensity. The outrage that was gushing out gets stopped on it's tracks before that scary gaze- " _I'll never forget everything you did for me. How you stood beside me when our parents passed away, how you juggled with law to keep my uncle's claws away from the family's inheritance. Even with my sister's… issues, you managed to keep everything in order, so we could have a future. And I'll never thank you enough for it._ "

-" _You give me too much credit…_ " -Patchouli blushed slightly, remembering those times, only two years ago- " _I was just a kid then, without Sakuya's and Meiling's help, I would have been powerless too._ "

-" _But now's the time for me to protect you._ " -Her eyes are even more intense- " _Go to beacon, live, learn, not from books, from experience. And in four years, after you become the wonderful huntswoman you can be, my library's doors will be open if you still want to spend you live there._ "

Patchouli says nothing. What can one say, confronted with the monstrous charisma of this twelve-year old girl, who has held the reins of her own fate for the last two years with sheer willpower alone?

* * *

 **Presenting L**

Life's always good in Kamishirasawa's School for gifted childs. Even if the headmaster is a bit… headstrong. The kids grow up in a benevolent environment, isolated from the worldly noise and surrounded by nature.

-" _Is good to see you again, Miss Goodwitch_ " -The blue haired woman seems absorbed into looking through the window, but the blonde teacher knows better- " _What brings one of my brightest students to my humble facilities? Surely this isn't just a courtesy visit to an old teacher_."

-" _Meeting you again after all this time is worth the travel, Keine-sensei_ " -Only those who know the stern woman can appreciate how rare the warm smile she's exhibiting really is- " _But you are right, I'm here on Ozpin's behest._ "

-" _So, after he fails to personally persuade me, he sends our favorite pupil in hopes of softening my heart? Oh, Don't look so surprised!_ " -She adds while turning around with a smile- " _As much as he might trust his little inner circle, you're the only one he keeps at his side, isn't he?_ "

Glynda opens her mouth to protest, visibly flustered. But she thinks twice before raising her tone. It's hard to forget Keine-sensei's lessons on proper behavior.

-" _Anyway, I share his opinion in the matter_ " -She says instead, fixing her glasses- " _Your fairies would benefit greatly from higher education in Beacon. And so would we from their presence._ "

-" _Fairies? That's a nice way to put it. Noise, plagues, vermins… the insect faunos have been specially mistreated by society, be it being physically abused for their small frames, hunted down for the alleged magical properties of their body parts or exploited for their frequent flight capability_ " -Keine turns forwards the window again, looking at the children playing in the garden- " _I built this place to protect them from the humans' racism. Why would I allow for someone, even if it's Ozpin, to pry them away from my embrace?_ "

-" _Because they need to learn how to fend by themselves in the outside world, and Beacon is leader in the fight against faunus racism_ " -Her gaze, reflexively hardened, softens again- " _You won't be here to protect them forever, sensei._ "

Keine sighs, and signs her old pupil to get closer to the window. Outside, five kids throw small energy projectiles against another one, clad in white. This other laughs and dodges, answering with her own projectiles.

-" _That's no bullying. Remember the game of danmaku? five for one is the minimum for the game to be fair_ " -Another sigh- "Her name is Lily White. _She's bright and cheerful, willing and friendly. She'll turn sixteen soon, and is always ready for a new challenge. Treat her well, and I might consider sending others._ "

[...]

It's already night when Goodwitch leaves the premises. Interviewing the kid -A promising one, albeit way too active for her personal tastes- and finishing other formalities took up a lot of time.

But it has been worth, she thinks, while looking at the bright full moo… Wait, full moon?

A chill creeps up her spine as some traumatic memories from her childhood raise from the dark corner of her mind she had relegated them to and stretch their metaphorical limbs. How could she possibly forget? She should leave before… A thump behind her triggers a short shriek, as she feels herself returning to her youth.

-"A _ll this bargaining with my students' future has left a bad aftertaste, miss Goodwitch_ " -Here it comes, the green-haired, red-eyed, bull-horned Keine-sensei's harsh love- " _Why don't we have a private lesson, for the good old times, to sweeten the deal?_ "

* * *

 **And here we end! Since the very start of the series, I have thought of Yang as a mix of Marisa and Mokou, so the idea of mixing both series has been rounding my mind like, forever. And then I saw there were only 5 crossovers of this particular series and felt outraged! There are so many possibilities!**

 **Putting the team together was easy, because the naming rule. I mean, because I came in terms from the beginning with not being able to completely fulfill the criteria. So I just had to pick between MAPL and MAFN (Marisa, Alice, Flandre, Nitori). Because the acronym was a must, and I found no convincing way to fit Marisa, Alice, Patchouli and Flandre. Well, that and no inspiration for Flandre's adaptation to this world either. Maybe she'll do something nice later on... maybe.**

 **Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this!**

 **Bidding farewell:**

 **-Planeshunter.**

 **PD: For people waiting for Kaleidoscopic Grail War… progress is happening, just… slowly.**


	2. Welcome to Beacon

**Here comes chapter 2! To be honest, I'm pleasantly surprised by the amount of followers just the first chapter earned, I wrote it on a whim, but I'm glad so many people found it interesting. Thank you everyone!**

 **Now, without further ado, MAPL** **始まります** **!**

* * *

 **Episode 2: Welcome to beacon**

Lily has seen better days. Sure, it all started nice and good. After all, what's cooler than a flying machine landing in front of home to pick you up? Her friends Wriggle and Yamame were appropriately impressed by this, and she had spotted that meanie Cirno spying on her from a window, biting her own dress in a fit of jealousy.

Then she discovered flying machines tremble, rock and shake. They are noisy and kind of stink, not like poo or the yoghurt she once hid under her bed so she didn't had to eat it. It was… odd. Like that smell the older girls had when they arrived late, only stronger. It forced it's way up her nose, and seemed to strangle her brain, making her kind of dizzy.

There was the problem with flying too, there was no space for her wings to move freely, and she wasn't used to stay still for so long. Dizziness and restlessness make a mean combo and, by the time she landed to join the regular flight, she couldn't tell right from left.

In that state, she had bumped into someone while trying to read her memo about the travel, and an opportune gust of wind had taken it away.

-" _Calm down Lily, the plan was easy… Just find the the airship with Beacon's insignia on it and… board… it…_ " -That's when she realizes she has no idea of how Beacon's insignia looks like. She hangs her head down, disheartened- " _Awww… What do I do now? Keine-sensei is gonna feel so disappointed if I get lost…_ "

After looking around in despair, she approaches the closest person. A lilac-haired girl with her nose stuck in a book

-" _Excuse me_ " -She starts with a polite bow- " _Would you happen to know what's the airship with the Beacon emblem on it?_ "

-" _The ship to Beacon won't depart until four_ " -She answers without looking up- " _But you can board it already, it's that big one with the axes and laurels._ "

-" _Thank you, but… did you say four?_ "

-" _That's what I said._ " -Her tone was monotonous before, but sounds now a bit annoyed- " _Now, if you don't mind, I'm trying to read._ "

-" _Well, it's just that now's 15:59…_ "

-" _What!?_ "

[...]

A minute, and a lot of running, later, Lily offers a glass of water to the girl, who seems to have trouble catching her breath.

-" _Oh... thanks..._ " -She takes the glass with both hands and drinks it in small gulps while the faunus holds her book. " _Hmm… I guess I'm in your debt, Remi would've killed me if I dared to lose this flight. My name's Patchouli Knowledge._ "

-" _Oh, pleased to… make your... ac-quaint-an-ce_ " -Lily stutters with the words. Keine-sensei insisted in politeness and she knew the basics of pleasantries, but never was too good with it- " _My name is Lily, Lily White._ "

-" _Nice to meet you too, and if you don't mind me asking… are you an insect faunus by any chance?_ "

-" _I guess carrying you flying the last meters gave me out, right?_ " -She scratches her head in embarrassment- " _Yup, I'm a fairy._ "

-" _A… fairy?_ "

-" _Keine-sensei told me that people outside will give me mean names, so I should make sure to co-un-ter-ba-lan-ce._ "

-" _'People outside'?_ "

-" _Well, you see…_ "

And Patchouli saw. She couldn't help but appreciate the irony of a social mess like herself spending the whole travel talking with another person. But, didn't Remi ask her to experience things? Well, listening to this energetic girl sure was an experience.

* * *

Alice is already leaving the port, feeling conflicted about her companions-to-be. On one hand, feeling people so close was somewhat heartwarming. On the other hand, a swarm of squeeing fans surrounding her from every direction didn't exactly made her feel comfortable.

She had barely kept her dignity, thanks to Shanghai and the other girls forming a circle around her, giving her enough space to not panic, but that was hardly "elegant". Before, the people of her agent would take care of this kind of situation, but now she needs to figure how to deal with it herself.

Even immersed in thought as she was, the sound of an explosion behind was enough to trigger her battle hone reflexes. Four shieldmaidens and two spear dolls quickly formed between her and the sound before she even had the time to think. That was absurd, they were obviously too tense.

-" _Thanks for your good work, girls_ " -She says, patting one of the doll's head- " _But we are safe here. I'll go check what was that sound._ "

[...]

-" _Finally! Some recognition!_ "

-" _The same company infamous for it's controversial labor policies and questionable business partners._ "

-" _Wha..! how dare...?_ " -There are three girls in the middle of a mess of white luggage. Two of them argue each other, while a third one that seems unsure of how to act- " _The nerve of…!_ "

Finally, the first one (long white-haired in a slightly off-centered ponytail, wearing a combat dress with the colours of the Schnee family) rudely takes something from the third one's hand (Short dark-red hair, black and red combat dress under a red hooded cloak) and leaves stomping furiously.

The black one (Long wavy black hair, yellow eyes and a questionable fashion sense) walks away too, leaving the little red one all alone. She seems desolate…

There's only moment of hesitation, and then Shanghai leaves Alice's side to approach the disheartened girl, who just sprawled herself on the floor. The puppeteer quietly follows.

-" _Oh, hello, little girl,_ " -Red says softly, upon seeing Shanghain over her- " _who might you be?_ "

-" _That kid's name is Shanghai, and she doesn't like seeing sad people. I'm Alice._ "

-" _Oh.. I'm Ruby_ " -She says, while standing up- " _Aren't you the girl who got swarmed back there? What was that about?_ "

That question paralyzes Alice. This Ruby girl seems nice enough, but who knows how she'll react if she realizes who's her? Sure, she'll most likely be able to manage a single fangirl but, does she want to deal with that again so soon? She's still pondering when Ruby talks again.

-" _Wait, did you say Alice? Like in Alice Margatroid? THE Rainbow Puppeteer?_ " -The sudden sparkle in her eyes says it's too late to hide it- " _Oh, I always wanted to know more the Dolls of the Round Table!_ "

Alice blinks at the unexpected comment. Sure, there's people who ask about her girls, but only after fawning around her for a while

-" _Yes?_ "

-" _Aha! I thought Shangai looked familiar! But they never released the official names of the individual dolls!_ " -She continues, before realizing Alice's surprise- " _Oh, sorry! I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons._ "

-" _No, it's… fine_ " -She answers- " _It's just… most people suffocate me with personal questions before even noticing my children. This is a nice change._ "

-" _Oh, I see… Then, how about I tell you about mine first?_ " -Without waiting for an answer, she takes the tool at her waist, which quickly unfolds into a big scythe- " _This is my sweetheart, Crescent Rose._ "

-" _Quite a big weapon for someone of you frame…_ "

-" _Right? A lot of people don't know how to react! It's a combat scythe. Well, that's obvious! But it's also a customized-bolt, high-impact sniper rifle!_ "

-" _It's… beautiful..._ " -Alice's sincerely impressed. Both functional and stylish, and it combines quite well with her wielder's own fashion- " _Did you design it yourself?_ "

-" _Hehe, thanks! And yup, most people do, back at Signal. How about yours? That weapon looks awfully complex. Do you have a sponsor or development team making the dolls for you?_ "

-" _Oh, no. At the start it were just Shanghai, Hourai_ " -A second doll peeks from behind Alice, but hides again as soon as Ruby waves her way- " _And me. And they were way simpler. When I began winning fights, [...]_ "

Almost without realising, Alice slips into narrator mode, and her dolls form up before her, enriching with their actions a tale about a girl who loved dolls and was loved by them in return. About her humble beginnings, and how she attracted sponsors with her victories and artful fighting style.

-" _And that's how, little by little, I could afford more and better materials, and this children's family grew so big._ "

Ruby claps enthusiastically, and the dolls bow with precise elegance. She opens her mouth to ask something, but the sound of a bell interrupts them. The welcome speech is starting!

* * *

Already inside the hall, Lily and Patchouli are trying to get a better view of things around them. Well, to be honest, only she is. Patchouli seems completely unaffected by both the new place and the crowd around them, nose back in her book. Lily finds it funny how they can be so different. Back in the school, only Keine-sensei seemed to read half as much as this girl. Maybe that's why she feels… not older exactly, but more like cool? collected? elder-sisterly?... was that a real word?. She seems nice too, so they sticked together.

Incapable of restraining her curiosity any longer, Lily flaps her wings, rising above the ground.

-" _You might want to get your feet back to the ground, Lily_ "

-" _But I can't see!_ "

-" _You know how people is mean to faunus, right? Maybe you shouldn't let them notice you so easily…_ "

Yeah, she knows. But...

-" _No! I want them to notice me, and ask me things and get to know me! If I'm nice to them, they won't be mean!_ "

-" _That's… not quite how society works, Lily. Many people get cruel with whoever stands out._ "

-" _Nanana…! I can't hear you! Nanana…!_ " -She's expecting the other girl to get mad and yell at her. That's how they interact back in school. But Patchouli simply deadpans for a second before letting out a scoffing snort. Confused by that reaction, a slight worry forms in her mind- " _Unless you hate me for it, do you hate me?_ "

The worry grows as she sees her new friend hold her forehead with a hand, and quickly deflates when a smile -a bit awkward, but the first smile she sees on her- surfaces in her face.

-" _No, Lily, I don't hate you. But please get back here, I'm sure flying in the hall during a speech counts as an infraction._ "

Feeling a bit sheepish after the scare, she slowly flies down. Maybe she's right, she should be a bit more shy and don't force herself into others. People find that annoying, right? She's steeling her resolve when the already closed door violently slams open.

-" _Sorry we are late!_ "

Before anyone else can even turn around to look, Lily's hair is already gracing the ceiling, and her eyes gleam with unrestrained curiosity. Truly, the attention span of insect faunus is not to be trifled with...

* * *

Marisa sits on an arc over the hall's entrance, trying to decide about joining the welcome speech or not. She has never been one to stick by the rules, and feels a repulsion towards authority that's almost physical in her bad days. On the other hand, this i _s_ class. Actual school where she would learn with the leisure of her life not depending on her performance.

As she hears the bell announcing the starts of the meeting though, she finally decides to skip. She has wasted too much time and now's too late. It won't do to cause a scene even before the year begins, she'll have more than enough time for that later.

-" _And if I was waitin' for the right time… it just passed._ "

Well, she already has a memo of today's plan and there is nothing interesting going on. She might spend the day setting some traps in the Emerald Forest… wouldn't it be hilarious to see people stumble into them tomorrow?

A couple of moving specks catch her attention. Looks like two students are running late. Hey, that could be a nice chance! She won't draw attention to herself is she goes in with them! To be honest, now that she has assumed she won't be assisting the welcome speech, she has the sudden itch to do it.

-" _Sweet as honey (ze)!_ " -She grabs hold of Broomstar with one hand and secures her hat with the other before jumping to the void. She freefalls until the last second, where she corrects her trajectory right on time to cross gazes with one of the students. A blonde girl who looks satisfyingly startled about someone's face suddenly appearing upside down in front of her- "Hey cutie pie! Name's Marisa (ze). Mind if I tag along?"

* * *

-" _Look, Patch!_ " -Even after the light's out, Lily seems incapable of settling down, and is excitedly jerking her shoulder while pointing with her finger- " _That girl is reading too! You could be friends!_ "

She tries to ignore it, but Lily doesn't seem about to give up soon, so in the end she looks up.

-" _You won't stop pestering me until I go talk to her, right?_ "

 _-nod-_

-" _Okay, Lily, First: People doesn't appreciate it when they are reading and you interrupt._ "

-" _But you're always…_ "

-" _Hush!, I'm the one talking! I don't mind, but you shouldn't go around poking on people, okay?_ "

-" _Ok…_ "

-" _Second, Patch sounds horrible, stop calling me that._ " -The way Lily gulps down, before nodin, looking all serious, it's almost hilarious- " _Now, promise to let me read afterwards and I'll go talk her_ "

 _-nodnodnod-_

So Patchouli stands up with a sigh and, putting her book under her arm, walks up to the girl that's "reading too". She wears a black pajamas, and the fact that she hasn't untied the ribbon that holds her long and wavy raven hair strikes her as odd. But she wears a nightgown and sleeping cap at least three centuries out of date, so she's not one to judge.

Now let's see… If I were to tolerate and interruption while reading, what words would feel less unwelcome?

-" _What's it about?_ "

The girl looks up, more surprised that displeased, and eyes her with suspicion for a moment before answering in a calm tone.

-" _It's story about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over it's body._ "

-" _Oh, that sounds interesting!_ " -Quite the phenomena, if she can say so herself. Maybe talking to this girl will be worth after all. She has to remember to thank Lily later- " _It's based in some known event?_ "

-" _Well… no, not that I know. It's just a novel._ "

-" _Oh, a fantasy story then?_ " -Patchouli has a hard time hiding her disappointment, but she tries to keep a friendly tone- " _I guess they are good from time to time, to take a breather from real books._ "

-" _Excuse me?_ "

-" _Have I said something wrong?_ " -The girl's voice sounds aggravated now- " _I only meant to have some small talk._ "

-" _' **Real books**?'_ "

-" _You know, treaties about they ways of the world, studies about the human nature, historical analyses, essays about chemistry or physics. My, even fables with a base of truth that can teach us about the past. Real books who actually tell you something._ "

[...]

-" _And Lily, a third thing, come to think about it_ " -Patchouly says some minutes later, with her face still red from a heated discussion- " _There's no such thing as 'People who likes books'. Each and every reader is different, and they don't necessarily share values._ "

* * *

 **And up to here we reach! I could've extended further, but then I wouldn't fit in my bed. And my head would hit the doorframes.**

 **Seriously now. It's gratifying to write a re-telling. You got an already established story to hold into and make sure you don't screw up too much with continuity, but you still can deviate as much as you want when there's something you absolutely must write. All in all, I find it easier than my normal kind of fic, which only borrows the settings, or maybe the mechanics of the world, to tell a mostly original story.**

 **Sometimes I feel like the tale writes itself, and not necessarily the way you had planned. Does this happen to you guys too? This happened with the Lily-Patche relationship. Originally I only planned for them to briefly cross paths in the aircraft, but they ended up sticking together. Fun how things work sometimes.**

 **Also, you might have noticed that the girls personality don't match too closely with the fanon. They reflect my personal perception of them, altered by the circumstances (They aren't nigh-almighty youkai with centuries on their back, just exceptional teenagers.) I hope no one feels disappointed or aggravated by this.**

 **Well, I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot of things, but this is already bricky enough for an afterword.**

 **Bidding farewell:**


	3. First Step

**Konnichiwa, Konnichiwa, Planeshunter desu!**

 **How's everbody doing? I'm fine, but can't really think about anything to write up in the forewordm g** **uess I'll leave things here.**

 **MAPL,** 始まります!

* * *

 **Episode 3: The First Step**

Sun shines through the windows, and the chirping of birds can be heard just outside. The night in the common room is now over. Lily wakes up, staring blankly around her for a second, before remembering where she's now. Then she turns around to wake up…! Oh, she's already up and reading.

-" _Good morning, Patch!_ " -She greets- " _Did you have a good night?_ "

-" _Patche_ "

-" _Huh?_ "

-" _I told you yesterday to stop calling me Patch, remember?_ "

Lily remembers now.

-" _I'm sorry Patchou…_ "

-" _So Patche, that's how my…_ " -The girl buries her face in the book she's reading- " _How my friends call me._ "

-" _Sure!_ " -Lily answers, wings flapping excitedly as her lips form a wide smile- " _You know, you are so standoffish that I thought maybe you didn't think I was your friend! Well, I didn't thought it, I trust my friends, but maybe... someone thought that, I mean… you… me..._ "

A gentle pat silences her. Patche is reading again. Well, her hand is warm and nice, so she doesn't mind getting patted like that…

* * *

-" _Hello again, cutie-pie!_ " -The rowdy voice of that "Marisa" makes her look away from her locker- " _How was the night?_ "

Alice tries to ignore her, turning back to her locker, but the other girl closes the door with a hand and puts her weight on it.

-" _Oi, Why the cold shoulder?_ " -She gets closer- " _No need to be shy, I don't bite (ze)!_ "

Her faces are almost touching, and she can feel the blush surfacing on her cheeks as she begins to panic. This is no performance, it's social interaction, a specially close and personal one. Usually, Shanghai and the other girls would stand for her, but they are inside the locker!

What does she do now? She's more startled than scared, but this is an uncomfortable situation anyway. She's not used to dealing with people, less such aggressive ones, outside the ring. But she's quite sure a boot on her shin isn't justified either.

-" _If you're trying to play ladykiller…_ " -A soft, disaffected voice makes Alice remember they are not alone- " _You might want to do so in a more private environment. But I doubt anything would change with such cheap pickup lines._ "

They both turn their gaze towards a lilac-haired girl, who's reading a book in the bench, facing the other way.

-" _Why don'tcha mind yer business, uh?_ " -Alice cringes a bit before that aggressive reaction- " _This is between cutie pie and me (ze)_ "

The reading girl doesn't even react. Is she having second thoughts about intervening? Just in case, Alice subtly reaches for her locker. When she's already sure the girl won't say anything else, she sighs without looking up.

-" _Annoying…_ "

-" _Huh? Do ya have a death wish or sumthin'?_ "

-" _She said you're annoying!_ " -A fourth girl, white haired also dressing all white, intervenes. Alice recognises her from yesterday- " _Beacon must be sinking low if they accept street thugs now!_ "

The reproached turns red from the offence but, instead of resorting to violence like Alice was expecting, she closes her eyes and breathes deep.

-" _Look, I ain't lookin' fer trouble, ok? I was just trying to talk with…_ " -She turns towards Alice and gets stopped in her track by a wall of spear dolls and shieldmaidens- " _Ok, ok… I know when I ain't welcome (ze). Don't mind me den, I'll just be over there or sumthing..._ "

Shanghai turns towards Alice, and the girl who looks like a doll can't help but feel some accusation in her immutable gaze. Out of all the ways this situation could've ended… this wasn't one she was expecting. Maybe the girl wasn't as bad as she seemed, maybe she could go after her and...

-" _What was that girl's problem?_ " -The last girl to arrive breaks the somewhat uncomfortable silence and her line of thoughts- " _My name is Weiss, Weiss Schnee. And you must be the Rainbow Puppeteer. It's my pleasure to finally meet you._ "

-" _Alice Margatroid_ " -She answers, shaking the hand outstretched hand before her. The overly ceremonious tone of the girl puts her at ease, it feels just like her usual sponsor meetings. So she's the famous Heiress…- " _Thanks for your help._ "

-" _And I don't think I have the pleasure of knowing you, miss…_ " -but the lilac girl doesn't deign to even look at her extended hand. Weiss holds the gesture for a while, tension clearly accumulating on her left eyebrow. Before her proud persistence, the lilac-haired girl ends up sighing.

-" _I don't have any gesture_ " -She says in a soft, calculatedly even tone- " _For the Snow Hyenas of the new noblesse._ "

-" _'New noblesse'? The Weiss family have proudly stood in front of the high societé for the last…_ " -Then she stops on her tracks, registering the first offence- " _Wait a second, only that snotty Scarlet kid refers to my family in such fashion. Who the heck are you?_ "

-" _I happen to be her lawyer_ " -She finally looks up from her book, meeting the Heiress eyes- " _And I happen to be the one who devised the moniker. Quite fitting even if I say so myself._ "

Alice can only thank the Dust for the timely interruption. If not for Professor Goodwitch's call, she can't even imagine how that would've happened.

* * *

-" _Any questions? Good._ "

Yeah, some of the students look a bit nervous here and there, but no one interrupts. _Well, this puts an end to the mystery_. Marisa has tried to figure out how exactly the trial of the Emerald Forest worked. She found nothing. But now, standing over the obvious launching mechanism, she can't help but smile.

There's a blue glow, and she catches one of the cutie pie's dolls looking her way. She winks at her, and the doll hurriedly hides. How does that work? Are the dolls alive or…?

- _Twang_ -

The sound of the first platform activating returns her to the real world and she firmly holds her hat. She's second after all.

- _Twang_ -

-" _Whoooooooooooooohoooooooooooo!_ "

Feeling the wind on her face, she allows the force of the launch to raise her to the apex of the trajectory, and there she pulls out her weapon, sitting sideways on its stick. The inertia still propels her to the front, but there's no falling.

Ah, the good ol' Broomstar. An anti-gravity, reactor-propelled broom, a custom-made weapon that probably has no equal in the whole remnant. While a bit unorthodox, it can be used as mace, quarterstaff, and even spear in close quarters. It also has some mean tricks at long range. A good friend made it for her long, long ago. But she's getting sentimental, and everybody else is flying through the sky. Now it's time to inspect her potential teammates and pick up the best.

-" _They tried to get us by surprise with all this_ " -She mutters- " _It's only fair if I bend the rules a bit (ze)!_ "

* * *

Face down, Patchouli flies through the air, not even mildly amused. This is no proper way to treat anyone. Are this psychos supposed to be the teachers who would teach her about life and fighting? She seriously doubts they are up to the task. With a sigh, she closes her book and pulls out a green crystal.

-" ** _Wood dust: Spring wind._** "

A burst of wind forms around her, breaking the trajectory. Before falling flat towards the treetops, she spies a yellow mane suspended in the air. She has to learn how to do that…

* * *

Twang after twang, Lily has witnessed the launch of all the other students, and soon it'll be her turn. This is similar to the games back at home, only it isn't a game. A drop of sweat forms in her forehead as she concentrates. She only has one chance, so she cannot blunder it. Internally, she counts the miliseconds (Well, she doesn't call them that, it's a word she doesn't know how to use) for the next and last…

- _Twang_ -

-" _Hey!_ "

With a well-timed jump, she dodges the trap at her feet, and looks up to the teachers, smiling triumphantly. For some reason, they seem dumbfounded.

-" _Hehe… no need to be so surprised, I'm just that great!_ "

-" _Miss White, while I certainly find your reflexes praiseworthy…_ " -Headmaster Ozpin is the first one to recover and speak, while Mrs. Goodwitch seems content with bending her riding crop- " _I can't help but wonder how do you intend to catch up to your classmates without the device's push._ "

Lily freezes from the smile in her lips to the tip of her toes, and then sets off as fast as her wings allow her to.

-" _Everybody, wait!_ "

Unnoticed by her, up in the sky, a figure dressed in black gives her a thumb's-up.

* * *

 _-Darkness-_

 _There's no surprises, only improvisation_

 _-Breathe-_

 _There's no reason to fear, only chances to shine_

 _-Breathe-_

 _There's no impossible, only wrong perspective_

 _-Breathe-_

 _There's no uselessness, only hidden potential_

 _-Breathe-_

 _"Success" is not enough, the aim is "Elegance"._

 _-Breathe-_

With a plan already formed in her mind, Alice quickly removes her dress and produces a needle from somewhere. A few seconds later, her children are holding a blue parachute, and she's being gently rocked in the swing underneath.

She doesn't practice elegance only for the sake of others. Even if there were no judges, no grades, she wouldn't degrade herself to panic. But this matter of the... "landing strategy" caught her by surprise. She's a ground fighter, and a remarkably good one even if she says so herself, but not so great with mid-air maneuverability. She can't help but smile proudly at the improvised solution.

Still, she's glad her schoolmates are busy with their own landings, she reflects, feeling the wind in her arms and legs. While quite modest, her white underdress is not the kind of garment she would wear in public. There's no way she could bear the embarrassment of being seen by them.

-" _Fancy meeting ya up here, cutie pie!_ "

* * *

 **Aaaaand cut!**

 **Wow, Weiss got late to suggest a partnership with the Champion. And all that bickering with Marisa and Patchouli wasted a lot of time. Poor thing, there goes her plan of combining the strongest and most clever girls in the same team...**

 **This chapter gave me some trouble, to be honest. Mainly because of two reasons.**

 **First: Patche hogs the camera too much. I don't know how it happens, she's just there in, like, 80% of the scenes that come to mind. I'm not even that big on her. I mean, she's nice, but all characters from EotSD are, so… dunno.**

 **Second: I'm trying to casually get in explanations about the weapons and semblances of the characters, since I can't just let you guys see. It feels forced no matter what I do, and I worry about letting the matter become weird if I put it off for too long, waiting for a good chance.**

 **Geez, MAPL was supposed to be a light-hearted story to write casually when I need a break from other projects, why am I racking my brains like this?... Whatever, things will work some way or another. I hope.**

 **Now for some blatant self-advertising. I'm writing my own original novel at Project Rhea, if you guys are interested in taking a look, you can find the links in my profile. Reading is free, and will always be!**

 **Bidding farewell:**

 **-Planeshunter.**


	4. Emerald Forest

**Konnichiwa, konnichiwa, Planeshunter desu! How are you all? I'm fighting a terrible jet-lag after my holidays, but aside from that I'm mostly fine. Still, please understand if I don't extend myself too long with the foreword.**

 **Well then, MAPL,** **始まります** **!**

* * *

 **Episode 4: Emerald Forest**

Lily's wings ache as she flaps them forwards desperately. The feeling of urgency and the pain at her back reminds her of one time she tried to get away from Keine-sensei's punishment. The whole thing ended badly for her, so it's not fun to feel in the same situation.

Also, there's supposedly creatures of the grimm around. She knows about them, but never had to face them directly. Back at home, Keine-sensei and Gardener-san kept the monsters at bay. Immersed in such thoughts for a while, she finally remembers where she is and scolds herself for not paying enough attention, resolving to change her mindset, when a white and lilac figure appears in her field of view, falling straight to the ground.

-" _Patche!_ " -Seeing her new friend in a pinch makes her forget her aching wings, and she accelerates to catch her- " _Don't worry, I got you!_ "

There's a surprised look in the girl's face when she finally reaches her, but Lily has no time to wonder. Embracing her to the best of her limited frame's capacity, she flaps even harder still to slow down the fall… Or so she expected to do. A lash of pain hits her back as her wings give up.

-" _No, nonononononono…!_ " -It was supposed to be a chance to shine! She was going to be so cool saving her friend!- " _Come on, stupid wings, not now!_ "

Butterfly wings are designed to flutter about. They can dance in the sky tirelessly and enchant the senses of anyone watching. But there's no way they can break the fall of so much weight, especially after being exerted by such a sprint.

What should she do now? With no time to think of a better solution, she closes her eyes, ready to at least cushion Patche.

-" _Wood Dust: Spring Wind_ "

Right before the impact, a gust of wind rises from nowhere, breaking their fall.

-" _Are you alright?_ " -Patche's voice sounds worried- " _That was a reckless move._ "

-" _I'm sorry, didn't expect my wings to give up on me like that, Hehehe…_ "

-" _Honestly… Don't scare me like that_ " -She pulls out her book again, and starts walking- " _You would've probably been right anyway, your Aura would've prevented any harm._ "

Lily can only laugh it off apologetically, but then something crosses her mind.

-" _Why did you use you semblance then, wouldn't it been easier to just take the hit?_ "

-" _There's so many wrong assumptions there that I don't even know what to point out first_ " -There's no sigh, but it would've fitted the situation more than the way she just keeps on reading- " _My Aura isn't suitable for defense, that hit would've hurt._ "

-" _But…_ "

-" _Eyes on the road, Lily. This is no time for distractions._ "

The fairy holds back a chuckle. It's kind of funny to hear her, of all people, saying that.

* * *

There are two figures walking through the forest

-" _Oh, come on, cutie pie_ " -The stubbornness of this girl in ignoring her is getting annoying, but she wants to do things right - " _I've already said sorry (ze)_!"

-" _I don't remember asking for an apology._ "

 _Seriously? Is she goin' ta get all 'tsun tsun' on me?_ Marisa sighs, hand in her forehead, trying to gather patience. She's a girl of action, and the first to admit her own ineptitude when it comes to diplomacy.

-" _Look here, cutie pie, an apology isn't something ya give cuz yer asked to..._ "

A white and blue surface, suddenly covering her field of vision, interrupts her. She pulls back a step, a bit more startled that she would admit, and realizes there's a shield-wielding doll right in-between the girl and her.

-" _Talk to the Shieldmaide_ n."

And with a ' _hmph!_ ', she draws it back into formation and keeps on walking, not even deigning to look at her. Surprisingly enough, one of the other dolls turns around, bowing down to her in an apologetic manner. Is she mocking her? What's wrong with this girl?

[...]

They have been walking north for a while as indicated but, until now, everything has been more or less the same: Forest and more forest, with the casual amenity of some minor grimm like the beowolfes they're dealing with now. That's when Marisa notices something new.

-" _Don't ya smell smoke?_ "

-" _Hmph!_ "

Marisa sighs, this girl is impossible. She has tried apologizing, giving her space and now, sticking to the strictly practical. Whatever, she's not going to ruin her one go at an actual huntsmen academy just because she has an uncooperative partner.

Sending her grimm flying with a broom swing, she can't help but admire her partner's style. Uncooperative or not, the way she's turning her own opponent into a spear cushion is nothing short of 'artful'.

-" _How do those doll's move anyway? They really look alive (ze)._ "

-" _Thanks_ " -The little smile that forms in the doll-like face catches Marisa unaware. _Wow, she really can be a cutie when she takes the stick outta her ass…-_ " _I provide them with my own aura and instruct them in how to move through the wires, so they have a soul in a way, even if it's not theirs. Someday I would love to find a way for them to be able to generate aura on their own, though._ "

-" _Ya sure love yer dolls._ "

-" _Well, they are my only..._ " -WIth a significantly less enthusiastic voice, she slows down until completely stopping, then her expression hardens again- " _Not like it's your business, anyway._ "

-" _Yer my partner, cutie pie_ " -There's no reaction. Seems like the moment is lost. _I swear, sometimes I would slap this girl!_ Still, that's no reason to give up- " _Of course is my business (ze)!_ "

-" _Hmph!_ "

* * *

-" _Well, congratulations in being the strongest **kid** to sneak her way into beacon!"_

-" _Aaaargh!_ "

As a poor three pays for Ruby-s frustration, they girl grumbles.

-" _I should've paired with Alice!_ "

-" _Excuse me?_ " -Retorts the Ice Queen- " _That's my line! Not that you would've been up to the task anyway._ "

-" _She's my friend, you bully! We could be too, if you at least tried..._ "

The second half was added in a softer tone, while the redhead touched her index fingers. It was true, she only wanted to get along well with her partner!

-" _Please, even if that was true_ " -She makes no effort to hide her incredulity- " _She's the four times Mistral champion, an overpowered warrior with a Semblance that allows her to control multiple dolls in combat. What can you do? Run away fast?_ "

-" _At least I know she doesn't use her semblance to control them!_ " -She yells, in an unintentionally loud voice- " _They are aura-reactive combat dolls hand-made by herself. Her Semblance is something else!_ "

-" _That's… beyond the point!_ " -But the heiress can't hide a small blush. She had assumed the elegant arts of the Rainbow Puppeteer couldn't be anything but a Semblance and never bothered checking- " _I am paired with you, and I won't fail this initiation because of a snotty brat, so you better pull yourself together!_ "

As the girl puts some spring into her steps to hide her embarrassment, she can't help but wonder. _If that's not her Semblance, what it is? There's never been any hint in her matches..._

* * *

-" _An... outlaw, with a known criminal record. Even if she has proved herself resourceful, is someone with little regard for authority or organisation most likely incapable of working in a team. Her presence here can only serve to further degrade the school's reputation._ "

-" _A criminal record she revealed herself, I don't think her willingness to collaborate will be an issue. About the teamplay, since you mention it, there's a certain flashy Champion used to being alone and hog the spotlight. She seems to have more trouble adjusting than our little bandit._ "

-" _Preposterous, sir! Margatroid's obviously just adapting to her new environment. Contrary to street hoodlums, who are used to her right hand not knowing what her left one does, winning the Mistral tournament four times requires discipline and a system, it can't be easy to slip out of such habits._ "

-" _Miss Goodwitch,_ " -The headmaster's voice carried only the faintest condescending voice- " _Is that the strict Beacon teacher all the students respect and fear talking, or is it the fangirl who went as far as asking for sick days to go watch the last finals live?_ "

-" _Sir!_ " -Glinda's protest was accompanied by a rather healthy cheek tone as she tries to determine if she's outraged by the implications or mortified for being caught in what she thought was a perfectly kept secret. She decides to go with the former - " _I would never allow personal preferences to interfere with my work!_ "

-" _I know, I know, but I have reasons to believe this will be one of the most interesting pairings yet. Humor me just this once._ "

The teacher can only let out a tired snort as she fixes her glasses.

-" _Don't I always do, Headmaster?_ "

* * *

There are two figures run with all their strength inside a narrow and poorly illuminated tunnel.

-" _I told ya this was a bad idea (ze)!_ "

-" _Oh, shut up, how was I supposed to know there was a deathstalker in here?_ "

-" _Maybe the drawing at the gate? That one with the huge-ass scorpion and all the little people (ze)?_ "

-" _Well, if **you** hadn't behaved like a stupid treasure hunter, maybe **I** would've given more more thought to it!_ "

That was just a bad loser's whine, nothing more. It's painfully obvious and it should just be ignored. And yet...

-" _Hey now, cutie-pie! Ya better listen to this!_ " -Marisa stops, blocking the way and turning to face her partner. She knows she should let it go and keep running, but that last comment has seriously ticked her off- " _I **am** a treasure hunter, okay? I've put up with all yer bull an tried ta be nice, but yer been an ass since we paired an I'm feed up with it (ze)! You know nuthin'bout me, but..._ "

 **-Twang-**

A shield bearing doll has stopped the deathstalker's stinger only a couple of inches before Marisa's face. She was so heated up, she didn't even notice! Suddenly speechless, she alternates looks between the doll and her partner.

-" _Look, I'm..._ " -Alice takes a deep breath, apparently ignoring the struggle between her doll and the scorpion grimm- " _I'm sorry. There, I said it! Now let's get out before things get worse!_ "

Still a bit confused by how everything is playing out, the treasure hunter wannabe let's her partner walk past her, and only reacts when the doll retreats, giving free way to the grimm. Who would've said at this point! Maybe pairing with the cutie-pie wasn't such a bad move after all! After a short while of running behind her, they can finally see the light of the exit.

-" _Grab tight, cutie-pie!_ " -She cries, getting Broomstar in position as her reactor starts heating up- " _We are leaving with a bang!_ "

* * *

 **What if… Patche had to unlock Lily's Aura?**

This is a scene I really wanted to write. Unfortunately, all four girls already know about aura by the time they join beacon, so I'll have to write it as a "What if…".

-" _You could have hurt really bad there, why didn't you activate your aura?_ "

-" _My… Aura?_ "

Patche eyes her with suspicion

-" _How did you get into beacon without knowing about Aura?_ "

-" _Hehe…_ "

-" _Aura is the manifestation of our soul. It bears our burdens and shields our hearts. All living beings have it and, with enough practice, are able to freely use it. For a huntress, is even more important than our weapons._ "

-" _All living beings? What about monsters?_ "

-" _No, the Grimm doesn't have a soul._ " -Lily closes her eyes in surprise when Patche suddenly puts a hand on her head- " _If you want to survive in this world, we'll need to unlock yours. Now breathe deep, listen to my words, and focus._ "

A bit overwhelmed by the sudden seriousness of the situation, the little faunus nods softly and takes a deep breath. Patchouli continues, the lilac shine of her Aura softly surging from her body.

-" _To right the countless wrongs of our days, we shine this light of true redemption. That this place shall become like paradise… Oh, what a wonderful world such would be._ "

The purple light weakens and disappears, but Lily's own white Aura appears strong around her. She raises her hands and stares at the strange shine dumbfoundedly.

-" _Woow, so this is Aura? I feel…_ " -She stops, noticing that her friend is short of breath- " _Are you alright?_ "

-" _I… I'll be_ " -She answers, making a 'don't worry' gesture- " _Unlocking other's Aura can be… taxing. But that's your own light now, your own power._ "

Lily's attention goes back to the glow around her, a bright smile in painted in her face.

 **BOOOOM! There you go. Yep, I have changed the lines. That's something I love to do, replacing spells or spell-like speeches with quotes from somewhere else that I find fitting or amusing. Can anyone guess where that quote is from? Googlin's cheatin'! ;)**

 **Hmmm… somehow a lot of traits from Weiss and Yang are appearing in Alice and Marisa. While that's somewhat intentional in Marisa's case, they are accidental for Alice. I mean, that wasn't planned that way, but when getting into their interactions, that's how they play in my head. Whatever, their personalities are quite different and so will be obvious, after some character development.**

 **Guess at least some people are wondering how many ripples the existence of team MAPL in place of JNPR will cause. I plan to actively avoid big changes that could twist the plot too much while encouraging the smaller ones.**

 **The plan is to create a satisfactorily novel story while still keeping the "retelling" part. That's the plan at least. Muses are capricious, as they say, and I don't intend to force things to work my way. If I were to feel like there's a better story to be told, I'll write that one and to hell with the plan.**

 **On a different note, next week I'll move out of my country for a new job. I haven't the slightest idea of how that will affect my publishing. I could disappear for a while or the anguish at the change of environment could make my inspiration skyrocket. One never knows... still, I think you guys would apreciate a fair warning.**

* * *

 **DONT READ THIS! IF THIS TEXT IS IN THE PUBLISHED DOC, IT MEANS THE AUTHOR HAS MADE A TERRIBLE MISTAKE AND PUBLISHED HIS NOTES FOR THE FUTURE. AGAIN, DONT READ THIS! STORY-RUINING, HORRIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!**

 ***BOOOP!***

 **Just kidding... this time. But it's true that sometimes, for whatever the reason, I write notes in the doc I'll later publish, if you ever see a warning like this, it's cuz I forgot to delete it before publishing.  
You guys are free to do whatever you want (heh, as if I could keep you from doing it anyways...) but seriously, reading whatever's after a sign like this could totally ruin the story.**


	5. Players and Pieces

**Konnichiwa, konnichiwa, Planeshunter here! Everyone ok? Hope so! Last time we had Alice and Marisa 'tactically retreating' from a deathstalker, while Patche and Lily walked around the forest without a care in the world.**

 **Now without further ado, MAPL,** **始まります** **!**

* * *

 **Episode 5: Players and pieces**

As she steps into the stone circle, Yang can't help but feel disappointed. Only some Ursa Minor, and this already looks like the end of the trail. She's been a fool for expecting more of a challenge.

-" _Chess... pieces?_ "

Her partner's voice interrupts her thoughts

-" _Some of them are missing,_ " -Not like this was a match, really. There were no rankings or grades yet. Still… - " _looks like we aren't the first ones here._ "

-" _Well… guess we should pick one._ "

That's when she hears something familiar screams… and chaos ensues.

As she looks up, she catches a glimpse of her baby sister freefalling with a panicked face she quickly takes note of for future teasing. But before she can react in any way, something moving really fast collides with her, sending both flying towards the forest. Not before dropping something blue and white in her place, tho.

As she motions towards the threes to check on Ruby, there's a water jet stream from her left, which smashes a rather unfortunate Ursa against some rocks. The excitable winged girl from the welcome speech quickly emerges after it. A third figure clad in white and lilac enters the meadow too, but she pays her little attention, focusing back on her sister.

Leaving her partner behind, she runs to the tree where the mysterious flying object carrying her sister has collided. There she finds an upside-down girl wearing black and white, hanging from the branches and holding her sister in a rather inappropriate way, both seeming kind of out of it.

She's about to do a snarky remark when the racket of countless trees being crushed one after another makes her turn towards the only direction from where nothing had happened yet. The biggest and ugliest deathstalker she has ever seen enters the meadow with a deafening screech.

-" _Oh, nice_ " -The blue and white thing who fell from the flying object and happens to be a doll-like girl utters in a thin, tired voice as she accepts Blake's hand to stand up- " _It has followed us._ "

Yang is a friendly person who thinks of herself as easygoing and hard to piss off (unless you touch her hair). But between the flying bears, the tree-chopping vermin, and what seemed like an unknown girl taking too much liberties with her little sister (unconscious little sister), her patience is running low.

-" _I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!_ " -She finally explodes, blazing hair and crimson eyes- " _CAN EVERYONE JUST CHILL OUT FOR TWO SECONDS BEFORE SOMETHING CRAZY HAPPENS AGAIN?_ "

* * *

Marisa doesn't like that candlehair. Even before she began yelling and burning -not that she didn't find that particular semblance interesting, mind you- there was something about the girl that didn't sit well with her. That's why she found so amusing that, two seconds flat after her yelling, an enormous Nevermore carrying someone who could only be the Schnee Heiress soared over the meadow.

-" _How could you leave me!_ "

Between the distance and the cawing of the enormous grimm, it was hard to make out the disheartened words of the white girl. Still, when Ruby -who she's so precariously holding- cries " _I told you to jump!_ " In response, she can't help but drop her in a laughing fit.

-" _Ooops!"_ -she says as soon as she can catch a breath- " _Sorry there, Ruby!_ "

With her attention on the 'raven rider', she barely hears the weak "It's fine" from below her. There are some seconds of intent silence as everyone struggle between facing the scorpion grimm or trying to help the flying girl. When the Schnee girl finally falls, Marisa almost goes catching her. It would be easy with Broomstar. But somehow, she doesn't like the way it all plays in her head. For whatever the reason, she can't picture the cold girl thanking her. Likewise, the possibility of somehow everything ending up her fault looks like a very real possibility.

-" _Water Dust: Winter Element_ "

She fights with the branches, still holding her upside-down, to look at the source of the calm voice. It's a Lilac-haired girl who nonchalantly reads a book in the middle of all this chaos. A blue crystal orbiting around her. Marisa's eyes squint in glee, that too looks like a cool semblan… no, that's not a semblance, it's something else.

-" _First cutie-pie and now this bookworm_ " -she excitedly mutters to herself- " _Looks like this promotion will be interesting!_ "

* * *

With a mischievous smirk, smartly hidden behind her book, Patchouli hears the very satisfying *Splash* as the puddle created by Winter Element breaks the Heiress fall. The disgusted moan that ensues is just the icing of the cake.

-" _You, Scarlet Lawyer or whatever!_ " -She recovers quickly, and of course begins throwing blames around- " _Don't you_ _ **dare**_ _laugh, I know you did it on purpose!_ "

-" _The gratitude of a hyena_ " -She answers in even tone, cool as a watermelon in sunglasses- " _Next time I'll let you splatter against the ground._ "

A worried cry interrupts their arguing. Seems like now that it's free from the yelling nuisance, the Nevermore circling the meadow is finally attacking, and one of its feathers has a girl pinned down in front of the Deathstalker. Thinking about what would be the best spell for the situation, she doesn't notice the Weiss girl actions until she disappears from her side. In the blink of an eye, she's in front of the girl, and an impressive ice wall has trapped the Grimm's stinger

The Heiress has proved she's more than a loud hyena, so she'll have to revise her opinion on her. A dangerous hyena it is. Nodding in satisfaction at her revised mental notes. She makes a point in ignoring how the two girls seems to reconcile, and how a third arrives to hug the first one.

She looks for Lily with her gaze, and finds the girl fiddling with whatever's in the altars of the temple ruins. When she comes back, she's carrying some chess pieces in her lap. What's she doing?

-" _Patche!_ " -She calls, quickly getting to her side- " _We just need to bring this to the cliffs, right?_ "

-" _Oh_ " -Patchouli's been so absorbed considering countermeasures against this pair of gigantic creeps, she didn't notice- " _That's right, we don't need to fight._ "

-" _Hit-and-run, (ze)?_ " -Somehow, the black and white is now behind Lily, and has snatched one of the pieces for herself- " _Feels a bit underwhelming, but works for me. Oi, cutie-pie! We got what we came for!_ "

* * *

Finally some fight! Alice was not very satisfied with the decision of running away, but everybody had agreed before she had the chance to protest. That's why now that they're cornered, she can't help but smile. It's time to perform.

Standing firm in the ruinous bridge, she deploys all her dolls, ready to stop the deathstalker in it's tracks. A pincer strike gets deflected by a timely placed shieldmaiden… at least that's what she expected. The force behind the hit is massive enough to send the poor doll flying, while the pincer barely slows. With the shade of a frown in her face, Alice quickly backsteps and deploys three more, this time carefully angling them so the attack gets completely cancelled.

She then strikes. A carefully aimed spear doll hits the inside of the pincer's joint… and only glances it before slipping past. She holds the urge to tsk as four more spears bounce off different parts of the monster's armor, missing their hits as it moves.

Another pincer attack forces her to deploy most of her shield maidens to avoid backing down, the brute force behind this attacks is fearsome, but she's here to prove than elegance beats strength. She'll not step down to it's level. That's when the stinger comes in without prior notice. Caught by surprise, she's about to step back again when an fiery explosion stops the attack, and sends the deathstalker back with an annoyed screech

-" _Fire Dust: Summer Red_ " -An uninterested voice (the girl who saved the Heiress) sounds behind her- " _The ancient deathstalkers got most of their weak points protected by overgrown flora. Scoring a direct hit is almost impossible_ "

She looks behind her to protest. She doesn't need any help! But her reply gets silenced by a screech full of pain. Facing the monster again, she watches as countless vines sprouting from the floor and bind it, and the plants covering its weak points grow rampantly.

-" _All the green, wake and bloom!_ " -The little winged girl, apparently behind this, flies around energetically, waving around her baton-wand… thing- " _it's_ _ **SPRING!**_ "

-" _I'll take it from here, Lily_ " -Continues the lilac girl, completely disregarding her- " _Fire Dust: Agni Shine._ "

The whole thing bursts into flames, fuelled by the overgrown flora surrounding it. It seems like a thoroughly attack, but…

-" _Patche!_ " -Protest the little girl- " _You're ruining my flowers!_ "

No, that's not it. Even if her experience against creatures of the Grimm were somewhat limited, Alice's overall combat experience far exceeded that of the normal aspirant, and the amount and variety of scenarios she has experienced first-hand are second to none. That's why she knows. Using fire against an enemy encased in vegetation might seem like a good idea at first glance, but…The creature screeches again, shaking off the flames. Fresh, green vegetation doesn't catch fire that easily.

The stinger flies past Alice faster than she can react, directly towards the lilac girl. Even if she seems a bit shaken by the quick recovery of their enemy, she reacts fast enough.

-" _Met… [Cough… cough, cough!]_ "

Her evocation get's interrupted by a coughing fit. What now? She could try to throw some shield maidens in, but she doubts she'll be able to outspeed the stinger, and it would looks awfully lame to fail like that, maybe it's best to…

-" _Mada mada da ze!_ "

The rowdy voice of this vexing Marisa girl interrupts her train of thought, as she appears out of nowhere and bats the stinger off-course with her broom. She then produces what seems like a bottle of mineral water from her hat and offers it to the coughing girl.

-" _Okay girls, pull your crap together! You were… Lily, right?_ "

-" _Yes!_ "

-" _That thing was amazing (ze)! If ya can do it again it'll annoy the thing enough for us to get something big in, I'll lend a hand. You are… Patche, catch your breath and try ice next time, works wonders around wet things. And cutie-pie_ " -She points at her. Somehow, the wide, confident grin in her lips makes her look really trustworthy- " _Cover miss healthy here, will ya? Yer the only one I can count on (ze)!_ "

" _You are the only one I can count on_ " Such simple, unexceptional words…

 _Thump_

Nothing she hasn't heard before, really. As the four times champion of the Mistral tournament, she's more than accustomed to having other's expectancies resting on her.

 _Thump_

And yet…

How's that, when this vexing girl utters them…

 _Thump_

She feels the urge to follow throught?

* * *

The huge-ass Grimm screeches again, trying to reach the annoying pests over him. His pincers and stinger are fast, but come on. She was racing with a friggin' nevermore before grouping up here, the thing is sorely outclassed.

As the thing turns around to follow her movements, the green vines rise from the earth behind it for the third time. On the second attempt they were completely trashed by the monster, but seems like they'll catch it unaware, the little girl is a quick learner. She eyes the bookworm and tsks, behind the shield wall, she still looks pale and unsteady, in no condition to do anything useful.

The vines won't hold a thing this big for long, she'd better do something herself to distract the monster before…

-" _Water Dust...: Queen Shiva_ " -The monster and all the vines around it freeze- " _Well? I hope you have something big planned, that thing won't go down with just ice._ "

That girl's attitude surely won't make her many friends, but whatever. Of course she has some plan! Gesturing the winged girl away, she prepares her big shot. Getting Broomstar over her shoulder, she aims directly at the thing and her Aura starts flowing towards the reactor. A good ol' powershot against an unmoving target. Ah, there's no kill like overkill...

And yet, as she's still channeling, the ice shakes and crackles.

-" _Uh… guys? Think ya can buy me a lil' bit more time?_ " -She eyes the Aura indicators of her allies, but they are all almost in the red. Until suddenly…- " _What?_ "

Right in front of her eyes, cutie-pie's Aura is refilling.

-" _Honestly…_ " -She steps to her side, eyes closed and an annoyed expression in her face- " _Getting us all pumped up to fumble in the last second, typical scoundrel. Shanghai, Hourai, please._ "

Her two unique dolls nod at her request and fly directly under the mass of ice, but Marisa barely registers. How the heck is this girl just… But there's no time to think now. A blinding flash is the only warning before the entire mass of ice gets launched into the skies by a powerful explosion.

-" _Well?_ " -Cutie-pie asks- " _Enough time?_ "

Other would probably stare dumbfounded, possibly missing the chance altogether. But Marisa quickly recovers her grin.

-" _Of course (ze)_ " -The reactor of Broomstar starts glowing with all the colours of the rainbow- " _Zenryoku Zenkai!, Maaaaaaaaaaaaster Spaaaaaaaaark!_ "

The subsequent blast gets the thing completely obliterated, of course. But the full-power blast has left her aura levels low enough to disqualify her from any competition, and making her feel like she just wrestled an hippo. Still she forces herself to speak.

-" _Ooooookay, (ze)… lemme… get my breath and… we'll… give a hand to… the other… girls_ " -A noise makes her turn in time to see the overgrown chicken getting beheaded by a red blur- " _Actually… never mind (ze)..._ "

* * *

-" _Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna and Yang Xiao Long. The four of you recovered the white knight pieces. From this day forward you will work together as team RWBY, led by Ruby Rose._ "

Both the speech could very well be addressed at the wall, Alice is too busy scolding herself to pay any attention.

 _How could I get so caught up in the moment?_ She has always made a point on using style and elegance over brute strength, so using her semblance had been embarrassing enough, but… She casts a gaze to the two perfectly still dolls in her hands. WIth their Aura receptors completely fried, they weren't any different from toys. _To actually use my Return Inanimateness like that… what was I thinking? I'm sorry, Shanghai, Hourai. I'll fix you girls up as soon as we can get to a workshop. You'll be as good as new!_

-" _Marisa Kirisame, Alice Margatroid,_ " -That's her cue, with a last look at her beloved family, she walks up the stage- " _Patchouli Knowledge and Lily White. The four of you recovered the white rook pieces. From this day forward you will work together as team MAPL, led by Marisa Kirisame._ "

Alice's shoulders drop. She never had any motivation to become a team leader, so she isn't exactly disappointed. But her effusive partner has the ability of being extremely, well… of making her lose her cool apparently without even trying. Having her as a team leader is an experience she doesn't really look forward at.

She steals a glance towards the girl in question, who somehow notices and sends a wink and a wide grin back her way. The girl who looks like a doll turns her head away before she knows what she's doing. Indeed, she doesn't look forward to her next four years of life….

* * *

 **And that's Players and Pieces, guys and girls! I'd like to think the wait has been worth it and the chapter came out well, but that's not something for me to judge.**

 **Looks like my new schedule seriously screws up my writting. I'm approximately down to ¼ of my prior productivity, and the Scenes at Project Rhea still need to get out at 1-per-week rate, so my fics are really hurting. Add a new FGO event when I don't really have a proper device to play it to the mix and we get a sticky situation.**

 **Still, some sort of order comes out of all this. For the time being, look forward to mondays as the day from my releases. I can write everyday even if it's just a little, but only mondays I got the presence of mind to edit a completed chapter and make sure everything is up to my not-really-so-high standards, so... Yeah, publications during mondays. Whether it'll be MAPL, Kaleidoscopic Grail War, Everything will be OK, some random one-shot or any combination of the prior, well… only time will tell…**

 **Bidding farewell:**

 **-Planeshunter.**


	6. The Badge and the Burden

**Konnichiwa, Konnichiwa! Planeshunter desu!  
How's everything going? Last week I had a shitload of work and still managed to finish both this and my entry for this month's RWBY's Reddit MonCon, so I'm feeling pretty satisfied. Looks like I'm getting the hang of being busy!**

 **Now, without further ado: MAPL** **始まります** **!**

* * *

 **Episode 6: The badge and the burden**

-" _Banzai!_ "

-" _Hear that? Why can't we all get along like Ruby's Team?_ " -The voices of Team RWBY could be clearly heard from their room- " _Come on, Patche, say something!_ "

The bookworm rises her gaze with a sigh, but simply says four uncaring words before returning to her book.

-" _Marisa, stop being childish._ "

-" _But cutie-pie threw my bed through the window!_ "

-" _You wanted more space in the room_ " -Cutie-pie retorts, clearly defiant- " _right?_ "

-" _I wanted you to use a normal bed!_ " -Come on! She's the one in the right this time! And she's the leader! Why none takes her seriously?- " _You can't have a triple-king sized bed here!_ "

-" _It takes exactly one fourth of the room, I see no problem in using my share of the space as I please. My children need room_."

The doll-like girl has been impossible since the pairing were announced the day before. But this is plain absurd. To make things worse, in that precise moment the voice of Ruby is heard throughout the walls.

-" _Or we can ditch the beds… And replace them with bunk-beds!_ "

Lily's reaction is instantaneous. Her whole face seems to brighten, all worry about the current situation suddenly gone.

-" _I want a bunk-bed!_ "

Nice, just nice… Marisa eyes the bookworm, but she doesn't seem to react in any way. Whatever, for now she'll ignore the fairy and force that apology she's due.

-" _Alright, listen here, Cutie-pie. I don't know what yer problem is, but I won't put up with this crap any longer (ze). What have I done to deserve this?_ "

-" _Do you want it written down?_ " -Is the caustic answer she gets- " _You might have trouble with the hard words._ "

She can't hold off a poisonous stare, that cutie-pie matches with other of her own. She's really asking for it.

-" _I want a bunk-bed!_ "

Breathe, Marisa, breathe and gather your patience… She is an easygoing person. She doesn't usually let things get to her, and even seeing her bed sent flying through the window is something she'd usually find more amusing than unpleasant, and she'd be the first to provide a crazy solution. But the way all her attempts at getting closer to her partner have been met with cold rejection is getting to her.

What has she done wrong? Granted, they didn't start with the right foot, but she had apologized, and everything seemed better during the trial, specially the last fight. She could feel they had worked really well together. But after that, all this bullshit began. The cold letdowns, the indifference, the dismissive 'hmph's...

-" _I. Want. A. Bunk. Bed!_ "

Maybe…

-" _Is this because Ozpin put me on charge (ze)?_ " -She tries with a knowing smile- " _Yer not jealous, right, Cutie-pie?_ "

The doll-like girl deadpans. Looks like that's not it. She's about to throw her arms and give up when another idea gets to her. One that makes a mischievous grin creep up her lips.

-" _Or maybe yer just acting all tsun-tsun…_ " -Wether it's indignation or embarrassment, this time there's definitively a reaction- " _Is that it? Too bashful to act normal 'round lil ol' me (ze)?_ "

-" _ **I WANT A BUNKBED!**_ "

Lily's words, accompanied by a slight tremor, prevent her from keeping up the tease. The little faunus is flapping her wings excitedly, while her white aura shines brightly. The reason for the tremor doesn't take long to be obvious. From the broken window and through the wall, multitude of green vines grow towards the room, catching and raising her bed as they grow in size and number.

When the girl stops glowing, the vines have practically created a second floor, covering half of the room. Humming happily, she gets flies up there and sits in her new 'bunkbed'. This time the bookworm actually puts her book away, pinching her nose tiredly.

-" _Please..._ " -she starts- " _That's enough uproar for a single morning. You can keep my bed, Marisa. I barely sleep, and I'm more comfortable in my armchair anyway._ "

-" _I don't want your bed (ze)!_ " -She says, knowing how childish she sounds, but incapable of holding back her indignation- " _It's not your fault, is Cutie-pie's!_ "

Patchouli's hair agitates, ruffled by an inexplicable wind, and Marisa steps back instinctively. Was the bookworm always this scary? Her eyes squint dangerously...

* * *

-"Okay, what exactly happened back there?"

Running towards their classroom in a desperate effort to not be late in their first day, Marisa finally recovers enough composure to ask the obvious question. Lily's expression brightens as she answers with a big smile.

-" _Marisa and Alice are now a married couple!_ "

-" _Wha…!_ " -The puppeteer blushes furiously- " _We are not a couple, and we are most definitely not married!_ "

-" _Of course you are, silly! Keine-sensei told us once that only married couples can share beds!_ "

-" _Marisa, why did you agree with Patchouli's solution?_ "

-" _Hey, did you see that shine in her eyes? I got two rules I follow no matter what: Take anything that isn't nailed to the ground and never defy the quiet ones when they get angry (ze)!_ " -She's basically joking but, her word, the bookworm got _really_ scary there for a second. Not wanting to remember that scene, she throws another taunt to the girl- " _Besides, you didn't protest either!_ "

As Cutie-pie answers in some irritated but bashful way, they cross Headmaster Ozpin and his assistant, and Marisa's carefree expression wavers for an instant. Since she got into Beacon and that was her main goal, she's not going to complain. But the motives that drive that man are a complete mystery for her. And she hates working (studying in this case) under a man she doesn't understand.

* * *

-" _Monsters! Deeeemons... Prowlers of the night! Yes, the creatures of Grimm have many names, but I merely refer to them as prey! Ha-ha!_ "

For most people, Professor Port's rants are an unavoidable curse they have to bear the best they can, but Patchouli actually finds them interesting. Having already memorised the written material for the entire year, classes where the teacher simply goes over the textbooks are the ones she can't bear.

The stories the man tells are, even if obviously exaggerated and partial, a source of experiences completely different from what's in the textbook and, if nothing else, serve to kill time. Also, she finds kind of admirable how the man is able to keep talking for so long without neither doubting nor stuttering, never blanking out or losing his breath.

A barely held snort draws her attention from the tale (and how Port's grandpa smelled like cabbage), it's that Ruby girl that finished the nevermore during their initiation. All her teammates save the hyena laugh at something she shows them. Whatever it is, it seems to tax on the Schnee girl's patience. Good…

Watching the hyena's patient grow thinner is so amusing she loses track of the teacher's tale, until he asks something that makes the girl stand and announce with clear voice

-" _I do, sir!_ "

-" _Well, then, let's..._ "

Patchouli backtracks, trying to remember what exactly he asked. As she does, a mischievous smile paints her usually uninterested expression

-" _I do too, sir!_ "

-" _Oh, hmm… Well, I didn't bring enough..._ " -Professor Port obviously didn't expect that, but he recovers quickly- " _Oh, well… Since is the first day, we'll overlook the fact this is 'Grimm Studies' and make it a bit more interesting. Would you two kindly come down here? Let's have a little duel!_ "

The hyena doesn't seem worried. Just a bit of surprise crosses her otherwise angry and resolute expression. Perfect.

[...]

As she calmly deploys three shards of her weapon, the hyena squints with suspicion. Well, the Schnee Dust Company has wasted no small amount of resources trying to get their paws on Philosopher's Stone, it's no surprise this one knows about it.

-" _Go Weiss!_ "

-" _Go Patche!_ "

-" _Fight well!_ "

-" _Kick her ass, bookworm (ze)!_ "

-" _Represent team RWBY!_ "

-" _Let the match begin!_ "

In other circumstances, Patchouli would've found amusing so much effusiveness in the referee and public when the contestants themselves behave so cooly, but the snow hyena opens with a barrage of glyphs as soon as the match starts. The fire core ignites.

-" _Fire Dust: Akiba Summer._ "

Fireballs spread in a rapid barrage, targeting the glyphs as soon as they form and cancelling them. On the hyena's favor, she doesn't react beyond a frown (most likely addressed towards her partner's cheering rather than the development of the fight) before changing tactics and charging forward with that… Myrtenaster thing her company is so proud of. Patchouli just stares at her approach, eyes still only half-open. The metal core ignites.

-" _Metal Dust: Silver Dragon._ "

The charge is stopped by a gatling-like burst of metal shards. Once again, the hyena exceeds her expectations. While she wasn't expecting to cause any serious harm, she was certain to at least hit her with some of the shards, but she stops every single one. _And smiles._

Patchouli doesn't need to turn around to feel the glyphs forming, her own body between them and the fire reactor. Well, she knew the hyena was dangerous, but if she intends to make her move with only that… The water core ignites.

-" _Water Dust: Jellyfish Princess_ "

The fireballs fizzle against a water bubble around her, and the hyena steals an annoyed backwards glance towards her team's seats. The glyphs before her dissipate without doing anything. Mere dummies. Just in case the hyena gets any funny ideas, she switches the fire reactor from auto-target to manual, leaving the offense to the metal reactor and the defense to the water one. Focusing in personally cancelling the glyphs will dull a bit her offense, but it'll be enough to keep the fight going.

The duel continues for a while, neither of them really getting an advantage. Since Patchouli isn't willing to take any real risk to get the upper hand, this has turned into a battle of attrition, much to the hyena's frustration. She holds back a chuckle, there's a last trick she wants to pull on the white girl before the make-believe duel ends.

As her aura levels decrease, she relents her attacks a little, just enough to give the hyena a window of opportunity to throw a big attack her way. And she takes the chance. A black glyph forms under her feet, and she charges forward at lightning speed, rapier pointed directly at her.

-" _I give up_ " -She announces suddenly, deactivating all her cores right before the clash- " _My aura is depleting faster, I have lost this duel._ "

Or, at least, that's how it played in her head. As soon as she opens her mouth to give up, her asthma acts up, stealing her breath and forcing her to gasp for air. The end results are the same for the snow hyena, who ends up tripping with herself in a hurry to stop her charge and rolling on the floor until the opposite wall stops her.

But instead of the collected, cool image of control Patchouli intended to give herself, the fit makes her look vulnerable and weak, and the 'incident' of the hyena looks way more noble, as she tried to spare a suddenly weakened opponent.

-" _And the winner is… Ms Schnee!_ " -The declaration triggers a wave of cheers but, somehow, Port's voice manages to rise over them- " _Bravo! Bra-vo! It appears we are indeed in the presence of a true Huntress-in-training!_ "

The hyena groans, painfully getting up, and she does the same, studying her features carefully. She's good, even if she already knew she was no mere rich kid, in this duel she has displayed a great deal of skill and resourcefulness. But, maybe the most important, even with all the provocation she hasn't taken the obvious chance to 'accidentally' hurt her.

Not that she was really at her mercy, but that's not the point. A good hearted hyena brings up a dilemma she'd rather not have stumbled upon. Maybe she's crafty enough to see through her test? The Schnee are anything but stupid…

In the end, they girl stomps out of the classroom, and Patchouli decides to hold her final verdict for now.

* * *

As much as Alice has tried to focus in the class, between Marisa's nagging (her word, the girl never gives up), team RWBY's commotion, and the naturally sleep-inducing voice of Professor Port, that has proven a difficult task. It was a relief when the two girls stepped into the improvised arena. Duels are more of her domain, after all.

Still, what she sees there only makes her frown. She can tell Patchouli is holding back, that's painfully obvious. But yet, she can see no merit in her actions. Without caring for victory, she just stands there, ignoring obvious openings and refusing to take any risk. She can only compare her to an unmoving fortress, impregnable but harmless.

To be honest, the attitude and skill of her opponent are more worthy of praise. Even if her attempts at breaking the other girl's defenses are being thoroughly dismantled, she has yet to make a false move. Her patience is obviously taxed, whether by Patchouli's attitude or her own team's cheering, Alice could not tell. But she perseveres with precision and grace. At this rate, she'll win by aura depletion.

Then there's a change. A bait, painfully obvious to her, but it's easier to notice that short of things from the spectator's seat. The heiress takes it, using the fake opportunity to try and end it with a big attack. Slightly disappointed, Alice tries to get a hint of whatever Patchouli might be trying, but between her unreadable expression and incomprehensible weapon, it could be anything.

When the duel gets to it's anticlimactic end, she can only grimace at the unsightly scene. Instead of trying to stop, the fencer should've jumped, simply dodging the suddenly disabled opponent with an elegance fitting the rest of the performance. But it's too late for that now.

As Professor Port announces the winner and the bell marks the end of the class, Alice wonders if she should have some words with Patchouli. That's no way to perform in combat, if she intends to behave like that in the future, they might have trouble working together. She has almost decided to give her a good scolding when the Schnee girl actions catch her attention.

She stomps out of the classroom, disregarding her team leader's calls. Hourai nudges at her skirt, and Alice throws her a questioning look. As only answer, the doll points towards the door.

-" _Are you curious, child?_ " -Hourai nods- " _You know peeping is poor taste, right?_ "

The doll looks down, but insist in pulling her skirt, and points to the door again.

-" _Alright, alright_ " -There's some amusement in the fake sighing voice- " _I'll admit I'm curious too._ "

[...]

-" _That's preposterous._ "

-" _Excuse me?_ "

As the girl in white rants, Alice slowly loses her interest. They might both have trouble with their partner and team leader, but the similarity ends there. Okay, maybe 'exceptional skills on the battlefield matched only by poor attitude' applies to her too but, as Professor Port says (Oddly perceptive for a man so fixated in himself), Weiss is a child used to get exactly what she wanted.

She's had her fair share of troubles, and has only reached where she's now due to persistence and hard work. The precision and grace that make up the Rainbow Puppeteer, in other words, everything that make her special, aren't even skills she were born with. Only countless hours of dedication to her art and craftsmanship allowed her to get there.

She's about to leave when Port's last words pick up her attention again.

-" _So instead of fretting about what you don't have, savor what you do. Hone your skills, perfect every technique, and be not the best leader, but the best person you can be._ "

There's a small pang of guilt. She's not been the best person she can be, not even remotely close. Marisa might be a rash hoodlum, but she doesn't deserve the thorny treatment she's been giving her.

* * *

Following Cutie-pie, Marisa ended up tumbling into the Headmaster talking with Ruby.

-" _Being a team leader isn't just a title you carry into battle, but a badge you wear constantly. If you're not always performing at your absolute best, then what reason do you give others to follow you?_ "

What a load of crap. She is already giving her best, she always does. And does that give Cutie-pie any reason to follow her? Nope.

It's time to bring out the big guns.

* * *

Alice doesn't return to her room until late that night, her resolve to be a better person held firm. As she opens the door, Patchouli looks up from her book and greets her with a nod. Not wanting to wake up Lily and Marisa, who she assumes are sleeping, she answers in the same fashion before taking a look around.

This morning they had to leave in a hurry, and she did so under the impression their room looked more like ground zero than a dormitory, but things aren't that bad. Granted, countless green vines sprout from the outer wall, holding Lily's bed near the ceiling, but they fit the holes they made good enough to keep the cold air outside, and the branches can be used to hang things, like the gaslamp lantern Patchouli is using to read.

Someone has fixed the window, broken once when she (remembering her outburst, she blushes a little) threw Marisa's bed out, and then totalled with Patchouli throwing her own (remembering _that_ outburst, she shudders a little and looks at the girl nervously, but she's absorbed in her reading again). True to her word, the girl's area of the room only has the rocking chair she's sitting in now and bookcases full to the brim.

Then her gaze turns towards _their_ side of the room with a sigh. A single, elegant and frilly bed, that she spent yesterday dressing, sits there, it's contents hidden behind curtains. Out of all the people, she never thought she would be sharing beds with a street scoundrel. Wanting to settle it as soon as possible, she opens the curtains with a sigh.

She was ready for the other girl hogging the whole bed. She was ready to get kicked around until morning. She was ready for an unsightly sleeping posture and loud snoring. What she wasn't ready for, was the peaceful smile in the blonde girl's face as she slept. She looks so defenseless, no trace of her usual sharpness, that slight tension that never seems to abandon her. Defenseless and… cute. Remembering Lily's impertinent remark about married couples, she blushes to the root of her hair.

Suddenly too embarrassed to get close to her sleeping leader, she sends two shieldmaidens to put a blanket on her shoulders before she takes the opposite side of the bed.

-"I'm… I'm sorry I wasn't a good partner. Tomorrow things will be different" -She looks to her sleeping leader a last time before turning around, still feeling her face burning- "Good night, Marisa."

* * *

As she feels her partner's weight sinking the mattress and hears her words, Marisa smiles inwardly. She bought it.

* * *

 **The Schnee Dust Archives:**

 **WARNING** : you are accessing sensitive information, please treat it with the adequate discretion.

 **Name:** Philosopher's Stone

 **Status:** Scarlet Property

 **Category:** Relic

 **Description:**

One of the five known Relics held by the Scarlet family.

This weapon consists in five distinct dust reactors, each one aligned with a different element. The reactors can be activated independently or in combination, and are capable of deploying a varied array of effects. The greatests shortcoming known is its heavy reliance in dust to function, making it an expensive weapon to use and maintain.

The Relic uses an ancient five-element principle, considered outdated nowadays, but it's inner workings are a complete mystery. Getting a hold into it to reverse-engine its inner working is, like with most of the known Relics, a high-priority objective.

 ******Level 1 Clearance required to access the full archive******

* * *

 **And that's it until next time!**

 **With how things have gotten busier for me, lately a lot of my writing has been more based in a sense of duty and sheer stubborness (I refuse to stop writing just because of stupid ten-hour split shifts, dangit) and less out of inspiration and actual enjoyment (not that I don't enjoy, mind me, but I used to do so much more).**

 **Obvious problems aside, that affects my self-confidence quite a bit, and I find myself wasting a lot of my scarce time reading and re-reading everything, which in turn only accomplishes pointless small changes and an arguable improvement in my spelling.**

 **Anyway, as I said in the foreword, looks like I'm getting the hang of it, let's see what happens!**

 **-Planeshunter**


	7. Delilyum

**If you're reading this, the author forgot to write a foreword, oops!**

* * *

As Cardin's heavy mace squarely impacts against Lily's chest, Patchouli can't hold a cringe. That hast to hurt.

-" _Lily White's aura is under 25%!_ " -Professor Goodwitch voice sounds with authority, interrupting the huge boy's follow up- " _The winner is Cardin Winchester!_ "

There's an ugly monster named indignation coiling inside the lilac girl. Lily's no front liner, placing her in a one versus one duel is already a disadvantage, especially in a place with no plants at hand to use her semblance on, and too small for her superior mobility to count. The attitude of the twice bigger boy after the victory declaration only serves increase the feeling. Patchouli understands the importance of individual strengths in this line of work and yet, no matter how you look at it, this match was anything but fair.

Then she proceeds to explain basic strategy as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. The indignation still lingers for a while, but lacking a proper outlet for it, Patchouli decides to focus back in her book, furiously going over the lines of text in an attempt to forget the whole thing. And actually... this book is a surprisingly rare one. While almost anything touching the subject of the Schnee family is biased one way or another, this time seems like she's finally looking at some semblance of impartiality. To her surprise, there seems to be plenty of exemplary humans beings within the family three, it's just they never…

A wave of restlessness among the students interrupts her pondering. What was the professor talking about to stir such commotion?

-" _[...] Those who choose to compete in the combat tournament will be representing all of Vale!_ "

Oh, great, a tournament. She eyes towards their fearless leader with a defeated expression. There's no way _she_ 's going to let slip such a chance to show off...

* * *

-" _So there I was, alone in the middle of the Skull Snakes hideout, with darkness as my only cover…_ "

-" _The Snakes got infrared cameras in their hideout._ " -Yang interrupts with an annoyed sigh, earning a hostile gaze from Marisa- " _That wouldn't work._ "

-" _Well, it worked. Guess I'm just that good (ze)!_ "

-" _I say your story is complete bullshit._ "

-" _I say your brain is complete bullshit!_ "

The two girls lock fierce gazes, and Alice can hold back a sigh. They are so similar it's like watching someone argue with her reflection. Why can't they get along when they obviously have so much in common?

As the discussion degenerates into an insult fest, she loses interest, letting her mind wander until she notices Lily's state. She's looking downwards to her plate, disheartenedly playing with her food.

-" _Lily, are you okay?_ "

-" _Eh?_ " -The little girl startledly looks up- " _Of course I'm okay! Why?_ "

She tries to force a smile, but she's not deceiving anyone.

-" _Well, you seem a little…_ _ **not**_ _okay,_ "

Those words make everyone's attention focus on the fairy, and Alice can't help but feel a small regret seeing her shrink and blush. It wasn't her intention to embarrass her teammate.

-" _Geeez!_ " -She explodes after a moment of silence, waving her arms around to emphasise her words - " _I'm alright, ok?_ "

But her waving subsides when he notices CRDL surrounding a long haired ginger girl with bat-like wings in her back and head, that looks terribly uncomfortable and is trying her best to get away.

-" _Cardin has been picking on you since the first week of school._ "

-" _He just doesn't know yet how nice I am!_ " -Lily pumps her fists in a motivated pose- " _I'm sure we'll get along in no time!_ "

-" _Lily, he's a bully!_ "

-" _I'm sure he's more scared of me than I'm of him!_ "

-" _You know that you can ask for help, right?_ " -Patchouli interrupts their dialogue- " _If you ever need it._ "

-" _Yeah! We'll burn him on the stake!_ "

Marisa and Yang step on each other's words, and then lock gazes aggressively again.

-" _No staking anyone!_ " -Lily yells, eyes closed, before continuing in a more normal tone- " _Look girls, is alright. I'll solve this myself. It's not like I'm the only one he picks on, anyway..._ "

Those last words are motivated by the way Cardin is now pulling one of the wing-ears of the girl, causing a pained yelp.

-" _See guys!_ " -He exclaims triumphantly as he finally releases the girl- " _I told you they were real!_ "

-" _What a freak!_ "

With that comment from one of the cronies, they leave the girl alone. She stands up and silently leaves too. It's hard to not notice the shine around her eyes.

-" _Such brutality…_ " -Alice comments- " _That short of people are the epitome of unrefinement._ "

-" _And he's not the only one…_ "

Blake's words hold a dark tone. Is surprising to see this much animosity for the usually cool girl. Anyway, is time for them to leave, so they pick up their trays and stand up. With her mind already back to her usual worries, Alice doesn't notice Lily's last sigh, nor the cruel smile in Cardin's lips as he watches them leave.

* * *

Before the hyperactive torrent of facts Professor Oobleck is raining upon them, Lily is taking refuge behind her book. She doesn't like it, to hear about people killing each other. Doesn't matter who was originally in the right or in the wrong. In the end, there's only victims. Towns without working hands and children without parents.

War is bad. She doesn't need anyone to tell her that.

That's why her feelings towards Cardin scare her a bit. When her friends had offered to 'burn him on the stake' she had felt… happy. They are right, he's an insufferable bully that finds pleasure in harming others. But she can't simply stand up to him. That would surely escalate into a fight.

If only she had a chance to prove her point, to show the bulky boy that there was no point in picking fights and stirring trouble…

She steals a gaze towards him, just in time to see him throwing a paper ball towards a sleeping Marisa, who wakes up with a startle right as Professor Oobleck ask a question.

-" _Miss Kirisame, finally contributing to class! This is excellent! Excellent! What's the answer?_ "

-" _Well… ya know…_ " -Marisa scratches her head, in a desperate bid for time- " _The answer to… the question (whatever the question was...)_ "

Judging by the muffled laugh behind her, Lily's not the only faunus to hear Marisa's, last four, mumbled words. Noticing the pleading look her leader throws her way, she puts her hands together in apology, she hasn't been paying attention either. But maybe the others… Nope. Alice is looking away with her best 'humph' face, and Patche… Patche seems to be... asleep with her eyes open? wow, she needs to learn that trick!

-" _Is… as we all know..._ " -In the end, since no one seems willing to lend her a hand, Marisa just shrugs and gives her standard answer to any war-related question- " _Superior firepower (ze)!_ "

-" _Very funny, Miss Kirisame._ " -The disgusting laugh Cardin lets out earns the professor's attention- " _Mr. Winchester, perhaps you would care to share your thoughts on the matter?_ "

-" _Well..._ " -He answers without losing her cool- " _I know is a lot easier to train an animal than a soldier._ "

-" _The nerve of!_ " -Before anyone can react, Alice jumps from her seat. That earns the attention of the whole class, the previously sleeping Patche included- " _Oh, I mean… If I'm allowed to interject, Doctor Oobleck?_ "

-" _You have a problem, baby doll?_ "

Noticing her embarrassment, Cardin is quick to strike. But Alice counters easily.

-" _No, I have the answer._ " -To Lily's amusement and hidden from the professor's line of sight by Alice's body, Hourai addresses a very rude gesture to the bully- " _It's night vision. Many Faunus are known to have nearly-perfect sight in the dark._ "

-" _General Lagune was inexperienced, and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep. His massive army was outmatched, and the general was captured._ " -Reached this point, Blake turns towards Cardin, a taunting smile in her lips- " _Perhaps if he'd paid attention in class, he wouldn't have been remembered as such a failure._ "

Unsurprisingly, the boy forgets where he is at the taunt, and stands up, ready for a fight. Oobleck's voice stops him before he has the chance.

-" _Mister Winchester, please take your seat! You and Miss Kirisame can see me after class for additional readings_ "

* * *

-" _You think Marisa will be OK?_ "

Lily's worried voice makes Alice feel a bit guilty. She could've at least tried to help her, but… no. Marisa brought that upon herself, she'd been the first to throw a helping hard if her partner had been actually trying. If she gets into trouble for getting asleep in the middle of a lesson, that's just desserts for her.

Hourai nods reassuringly, even if Shangai looks crestfallen by the outcome. Thinking about it, doesn't matter if it was Marisa's own fault, she can always offer to help her study so this doesn't happen again…

Such deliberations are interrupted when the door of the classroom opens and Marisa storms outside, her cloudy expression turns into mocking bitterness when she sees her team waiting for her.

-" _How nice of ya to wait me here, but we could've saved time if ya guys had thrown me a bone back there (ze)_ " -Her words are harsh, but there's an amused shine in her eyes- " _Let's go, that guy's jerkness might be contagious._ "

They are already leaving when Carding shouts behind them.

-" _Hey, vermin!_ "

Lily turns around right in time for what seems like a chewed gum to stick in her bangs. The bully leaves in the opposite direction with smug steps, laughing all the while. Marisa pulls out her broom, but Lily stops her with a hand.

-" _Lily?_ "

It takes a few seconds for the little girl to react. With her head hanging down and her hair projecting shadows over her face, it's hard to read her face. Finally, a radiant expression topped up with a wide smile appears.

-" _It's fine guys, don't worry._ "

That defuses the situation… more or less. Patchouli's never changing expression seems really tense when she adds:

-" _You know, I would burn him on the stake for real, just say the word._ "

As they finally leave, Alice can only think about the fine shining line around Lily's eyes. But the little girl seems determined to face this alone, and the puppeteer can respect that. As they turn the corner and head for the exit, she decides to keep it to herself

* * *

-" _Pffff… Thanks for the offer, Cutie-pie, but I need no help with my studies (ze)!_ "

For someone who just got chewed up by a teacher and received enough additional readings to occupy all her free time, it's amazing how fast has Marisa bounced back. That's why Lily admires her leader so much. Many people have charisma and strategic vision, but the energy to stay positive no matter what… that was the role model she wanted to follow.

-" _How do you expect to face the test if your can't even answer a simple question during lessons?_ "

-" _As I do everything in this life (ze), cheating!_ "

Uhhh… Sweatdropping, Lily refects that maybe she shouldn't follow this role model point-by-point after all… She was half-expecting Alice to explode, but Patchouli interrupts before she has the chance.

-" _There are things you can't cheat in this life, Marisa._ "

-" _Oh, yeah? Name one!_ "

-" _The transcripts to enter Beacon, for instance, you had to do those yourself._ "

-" _Way ahead of ya! I hacked my files into the system!_ " -She points her thumb to herself, chest full of pride- " _Never even did those to begin with!_ "

That's where Alice jumps in. Soon, the discussion degenerates in their usual bickering, and Lily lags behind to watch her teammates with a smile. It's nice to be here. Even if she misses Keine-sensei and her friends sometimes, and -this thought makes her touch the part of her hair still sticky in spite of her best efforts- Cardin's meanness makes her life harder than it needs to be, being with MAPL makes it all worth.

-" _Who would've said, so the crazy witch never really made into the academy, huh?_ " -Lily's heart skips a beat after hearing the whisper from her left. She turns around to see the imposing figure of Cardin Winchester coming out from the bushes- " _I'm sure she would get into trouble if someone were to rat her..._ "

-" _Cardin? What are you doing here?_ "

-" _Oh, you know, taking an evening walk to clear up my head, thinking about how I reaaaaally need someone to do those additional readings for me. And then I hear that? As a good student, is my duty to report such behavior to the teachers…_ "

-" _Cardin, please! They'll expel her!_ "

-" _I don't see how that's a problem of mine. Of course, if someone were to do some errands for me, I could conveniently forget this conversation…_ "

Lily glups, fear rising as comprehension comes.

-" _Are you… blackmailing me?_ "

-" _Oh? You know hard words! What a clever pest! Exactly the kind I could trust my readings to!_ " -He pats her back with enough force to take her down- " _Don't think of it as blackmail, we are just reaching an agreement! Now be a good vermin and go back with those misfits before they suspect anything, I doubt that witch's pride could stand her ass being saved by an insect like you!_ "

* * *

 **What if… Lily stopped the bullying from the root?**

For the whole day, Lily has felt the boy being oddly mean to her. Nothing big, mind you, just… small things. Bumping into her a bit too hard when they cross paths, making her the target of all his practical jokes, throwing dirty looks her way…

For a while, she's been at a loss about what to do. Is their first day of school, there has been no time for her to make enemies. Unsure of what was happening, she simply let it go, wondering what exactly was going on. But now, as the bulky body of Cardin block her way out the classroom, she finally understands!

-" _Oh! I know what's that! That's teasing!_ " -She exclaims, proud of her deduction- " _Marisa used to tease Alice, and now they are married!_ "

-" _Yeah, is teasing, what's wrong, vermin? Can't take some…_ " -The boy's answer gets interrupted when he processes the last words- " _Wait, what?_ "

If there was something else coming, but the way the little faunus stares at him, as if evaluating every ounce of his being, freezes his brain and prevents the words from forming in his mind, much less reach his lips.

-" _Hmm… Okay!_ " -She finally says. To everyone's surprise, Lily puts a quick kiss in the boy's cheek before looking away, the blush reaching all the way up her hair- " _You are kinda cute, when you're not being mean._ "

As the rest of CRDL breaks into laughter, is Cardin's turn to blush...

* * *

 **Yeah, the what if…? Is pretty much the standard ship for Velvet. But as you can guess for the description of the bullied faunus, we don't have Velvet in this story. Hmmm… I keep replacing my favorite characters, I must enjoy torturing myself… Anyway, this girl is the odd one in her team, so don't bother trying to guess the other members of SKKY! ;)**

 **Also, I personally hope there's a special place in hell for bullies, but story-wise, they have a lot of potential to grow (they rank pretty much in the bottom of what can be considered human being in my book, so they can only go up, after all). That's why I enjoy stories where this kind of characters gradually get over that personality.**

 **On another note, I'm sorry for the bad pun with the name. In my defense the original was bad to begin with… Also, did you catch the triple-meaning? 'Lily' and 'delirium' were obvious, but it was actually 'lilium' (Latin for 'Nynph', of so I've been led to believe) the one I thought of first.**

 **Distributing the events of the original JNPR into MAPL is harder than it seems, They don't have any direct equivalence, so I need to decide individually what event fits better what character, and then where I should invent a new one instead. It's quite fun anyways, so I don't particularly mind.**

 **As a last complain, sometimes things give the impression of being… pushed forward. I could actually spend a lot of time and lines into 'Delilyum' maybe three or more chapters, getting into details and secondary interactions that in the end I have decided to skip. I'm trying to keep some semblance of format here, so can't be helped…**

 **That said… Till here today! Now that my other fics are over, I might update more often, but can't make any promises just yet.**

 **Bidding farewell:**

 **-Planeshunter.**


	8. Forever Fall

**Konnichiwa, konnichiwa, Planeshunter desu!**

 **Welp I really though I wouldn't have this chapter ready today… Though technically it's tomorrow, heh. This splitting headache has been getting in the way…**

 **Also, I had to give this one a lot of thought. Please let me know what you think about it ;)**

* * *

N: Ok, what's the problem?

M: Lol, that was random, why do you ask? :P

N: For how long have we known each other?

N: Oi

N: You afk?

N: I'll keep pestering till you answer, you know?

M: Do you see me as a leader?

N: Sure

M: ?

M: But I'm egoistic and self-centered! Even if I want to do it right, I can't understand my teammates!

N: That sounds like a specific problem…

M: Well, I got this teammate that's letting some jerk bully her. She does nothing and doesn't want others to help either. What should I do?

N: Wait, wait… you're asking ME for advice? Has hell frozen over?

M: Not funny…

N: Actually it is ;). There isn't much I can help you without knowing her reasons but, for personal experience, DON'T TRY TO SOLVE IT BEHIND HER BACK!

M: And why's that? It worked when…

N: No, it didn't. For every bully you got off of my back, there was another waiting to take it's place. In the end, I had to learn how to stand up for myself anyway.

M: And here I thought they had finally gotten a clue… Then I got nothing, what am I supposed to do?

N: I'm sure you'll figure it out ;)

M: ...

N: Marisa, you're the most confident and headstrong person I've ever known. And, in the circles we usually move, that's saying something.

N: Who's secretly sneaking into the library to study every night? Who trains like crazy while making everybody think she's gone to fool around in the mall?

N: You never spare efforts, you never give up. This is just a different problem that requires a different approach. Don't worry, you'll figure it out.

M:...

N: Marisa?

M: How do you know all that?

M: Have you hacked into the Beacon surveillance system?

N: Ehehehe…

M: Don't you dare 'Ehehehe…' me. Seriously, one of this days… Don't come crying if you end up biting more than you can chew.

N: Don't worry, I'm sure you'll come running even if I don't say anything!

M: … Whatever.

Marisa abruptly closes her scroll, feeling her cheeks burn. Is she… blushing? Oh, Dust! She's really blushing! Over a scroll chat! That's what happens when you know someone too well. Sure, they are shy and cute at first, but once there's enough familiarity, they go around taking down facades and making you look like a friggin' shoujo heroine!

* * *

She's a spider, and the Dustnet is her web… no, no, that's overused, and not nearly badass enough. She's… A cyanea capillata! And the Dustnet is her sea, yeah, that sounds matter how much Marisa worries about her, is not even about getting caught, she'll never even get noticed. Except for that few little fishes who manage to agitate her tentacles.

But that's not the point today. A friend is troubled and so, she prepares to stick her nose without asking first, as so many times has happened the other way around.

It only takes a short search to find a camera featuring the short blondie. Knowing which one of her friends Marisa meant was no trouble for anyone watching their everyday lives, but this is the first time she focuses specifically in the insect faunus. To follow Marisa around is usually enough to keep her entertained.

Hmm… she's talking with someone, a tall redhead with bat wings sticking out from her back and head… A quick search shows she's the second year Koakuma, from team SKKY. Now, figuring out what they are talking about could be tricky, even if one knew how to read lips, but that's what SOFTWARE is for. 'An application for every situation' is her motto, after all.

-"Now, reveal me your secrets, little fishes!"

* * *

-" _But, senpai, if you don't mind me asking… Why do you put up with it? You could just kick his ass, right?_ " -Lily recaps in her own options- " _Or ask for your team's help…_ "

-" _My team is… strong. Like, really, really strong. I would feel like I'm weighing them down if I need to ask for their help over something so small._ " -Koakuma-senpai's voice flows slowly, as if she's explaining it to herself as much to Lily- " _Also, they are kind of a loose cannon, if they catch wind of what's happening, I worry about their reaction. they'll probably get expelled or even in prison._ "

It's true that kind of thoughts have crossed Lily's mind too, but that's not quite The problem. Her team is level-headed enough to keep things reasonable. _I would burn him in the stake for real_ actually, remembering the most cool-headed member's words quickly crumbles that thought. Still…

-" _It's not only that, I… hate conflict. It's scary to see people against each other when we could all be friends… I'm sure he wouldn't be that bad if he knew me better, even if he never tries to._ "

-" _Wow, that's… very noble of you, LIly_ " -Koakuma-senpai's expression recovers her usual warmness- " _You should keep up then, it will all be worth if five years from now you can both share a drink and laugh about the whole matter._ "

-" _But what if he does something really bad?_ " -The worry comes back to her voice as soon as her sempai ends talking- " _I can handle it if it's myself, but what if he tries to hurt my friends?_ "

-" _Oh, that's easy. Then is_ _ **pain**_ _for him_ " -Koakuma-senpai's eyes glow red and, for the smallest instant, her soft expression becomes a promise of hell before returning to normal- " _Set yourself a limit, Lily. No matter the ideal, there's always something is not worth sacrificing._ "

* * *

Welp, that was scary! She'll have to keep tabs in that upperclassmen too… But at least she now knows the little girl isn't acting like that because she's scared. That… means it's out of her area of expertise. Once she lost her own fear, she kicked the ass of any bully who dared try his luck with her, after all.

She can understand the bottom line of all this mess, but everything still looks crazy. For what she's seen about that Cardin guy, he's one of those people who only respects brute strength. Even if she wants to befriend him, she should start from breaking him a leg or two, it's way easier to befriend this goonish-types from a position of strength.

Still, she'd better keep watch for a bit longer. One thing is giving some encouraging words, but truly believing that blockhead is able to figure anything out by herself is nothing more than wishful thinking!

* * *

-" _Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while doing so._ "

Lily holds back a sigh. Usually, she loves outdoors, but with how things have gone lately, she simply doesn't have the energy. Also, fall is her least favorite season, and the red tones of this forest aren't really helping.

She glances sideways to Cardin's team, wondering what he wanted a box of rapier wasps for. The tall boy notices her gaze and nods her way with an unpleasant smile. It doesn't take long for Professor Goodwitch to sign for them to spread out. Of course, Cardin pulls her with his team. And forces her to do the work for them.

Truth be told, the assignment isn't hard at all, a small appliance of her semblance and soon there's six bottles full of sap lined up before them. If this was supposed to be harassment, it wasn't very effective. The task would've been even faster if her scroll hadn't been buzzing all the while, breaking her concentration again and again.

-" _Now, vermin, I'm sure you're wondering why I asked six bottles from you when there's only five of us…_ " -He pauses to wait for an answer, but Lily's not in the mood to speak- " _Whatever, you're going to teach that witch a lesson. Remember what we learnt about rapier wasps and sweet things? We are going to dip that tomboy in pink sap and enjoy the spectacle. And by we I mean you._ "

-" _What? You want the wasps to attack Marisa?_ " -Her scroll buzzes again, but this is not the time- " _She could get hurt!_ "

-" _That's the plan, you idiot! Now on with it!_ "

 _Set yourself a limit, Lily. No matter the ideal, there's always something is not worth sacrificing_ Koakuma-senpai's words resound in her mind, as she feels her piled-up frustration turning into outrage. They could've been friends, all the big dummy had to do was playing nice. But no! He had to go and mess with her friends! That's where she plants her foot and...

-" _Now vermin, what's with that look? Have you forgotten I could have her kicked out of the school with a phone call?_ " -That quickly deflates her. The blackmail, she had forgotten about that- " _I only want to give her a little lesson, but if you'd rather have her expelled..._ "

He's right. If she doesn't do as told, he could get Marisa expelled, and it would all be her fault! She closes her hands in frustrated anguish… What should she do? Cardin offers a sap bottle with another of his sardonic smiles. If she doesn't take it, it's the end of MAPL. If she does, Marisa could end up in the hospital, but will probably be up and kicking soon, and then she could apologize.

Should she do it, after all? There's no other option… Her phone buzzes again, it's starting to bug her off.

-" _I only have to throw it, right?_ " -She says, slowly reaching for the bottle- " _I hit Marisa and we are over with it._ "

-" _Not so fast, vermin!_ " -Cardin pulls the bottle away from her hand- " _The deal was before that defying glare. Now there are new rules! You'll laugh at her with us, and no explaining yourself afterwards! Unless you want her kicked out..._ "

That's… really cruel! She could easily lose her friends for this. But if she doesn't do it, she'll lose one anyway. It wasn't that long ago that their confident leader told them with dreamy eyes how she'd always wanted to join the Academy. If she could become…

-" _ **Moshi moshi! Mysterious Heroine X desu!**_ "

The obviously masked voice coming from Cardin's scroll makes everyone freeze.

-" _Who… who is it?_ "

-" _ **Non, non! I already answered that, Cardin my boy!. The question you should be asking is: what do you want?**_ "

-" _What... do you…_ " -In other circumstances, Lily would've found kind of funny how the big boy tries to get a hold of the unexpected turn of events- "What do you _want?_ "

-" _ **Good boy! I only wanted some words with little Lily there. Next time she should pick her scroll when she's being called! Also, who the heck coded it? It's ridiculously hard to crack!**_ "

-" _Eh?... me?_ "

-" _ **Yes! I have been paying attention to your little adventure for a while, you know? And it's painful to watch. What kind of hunter allows herself to be blackmailed like that?**_ "-Lily's reflexively tries to apologize, but this 'mysterious heroine' hasn't finished yet- " _ **You should have this kind of situation planned beforehand so you don't get stuck wondering what to do when it happens! Also, how about checking you blessed options before doing anything drastic? You got a team for something you know? And Marisa could've told you she won't get expelled for what she did!**_ "

-" _She won't be expelled?_ "

Incapable of keeping up with the scolding, Lily holds to that hopeful piece of information.

-" _ **No, you dummy! And if you had just asked…**_ "

-" _Enough!_ " -Cardin throws his scroll to the ground and stomps on it with fury, obviously unpleased by the way this situation is going- " _I don't need the friggin' blackmail! You know how our last duel went! Now throw the accursed sap or you'll take the worst beating of your life!_ "

-" _ **Yeah**_ " -The voice of the Mysterious Heroine X comes now from Russel's scroll- " _ **You know how last duel went, right?**_ "

As relief replaces all the pent up fear and worries for the last days, she finds something else inside her. Wrath. This guys have threatened her and her friends, and tried to manipulate her into harming them. _Then is_ _ **pain**_ _for him._ He has put her through hell and, when everything else has failed, he threatens her with violence.

Oh, yes, Lily knows how the last well went. Patche has drilled into her every little detail about how that was disadvantageous for her. But now… Closed space? Check. Far away from vegetation? Check. One versus one? Check.

Soon after that, RWBY and the remainder of MAPL get startled by a loud noise accompanied by screams as what appears to be a giant red beanstalk grows in the middle of the forest, rising four struggling boys into the sky. Then they are gifted with the visage of a very angry fairy scolding on them.

* * *

The whole situation wrapped up quite cleanly after that. Since Lily kept the whole blackmail matter to herself, it all ended becoming a case of practical jokes getting out of hand. Professor Goodwitch wrath diminished notably when CRDL sheepishly took the blame for the whole mess, and everything ended up with a slight (by her thorny standards) reprimand and a talk about blowing things out of proportion.

Lily's alone, leaning in a veranda outside the cafeteria, apparently gazing into the horizon. Alice's reserved a workshop for the whole day and they probably won't see her until dinner and Patchouli... Well, she being herself, chances of meeting her outside are slight to say the best. No one of the other classmates seem to be around.

Marisa breathes deep. Is rare to catch the little faunus completely alone. If she wants to have that talk, she'd better do it now. So she forces her feet to move, and slowly closes the distance between the two of them. Lily doesn't react. Is she mad?

-" _All's well that ends well (ze)_ " -She tries- " _Right?_ "

There's no answer. Marisa can understand. If she had been a good leader, the little girl wouldn't had to face this alone. She has failed, first in becoming someone her teammates would turn to when in trouble in the first place, and then in understanding Lily's problem. But they have to talk, so she gulps with difficulty and tries again.

-" _Hmmm… Lily?_ "

The girl jumps and turns around with a surprised expression. Looks like she wasn't angry after all, just lost in thought.

-" _Marisa? So.. sorry! I was thinking and..._ "

-" _Don't worry (ze)_ " -She dismisses the issue, feeling relieved that was everything- " _But we need to talk about… Cardin._ "

-" _Oh…_ "

-" _Yeah…_ " -She scratches the back of her head, unsure of how to continue- " _Will you be alright now? Won't they try to get back at you?_ "

-" _I… don't think so? They looked worried about me telling what really happened… I guess I'm the one blackmailing them now!_ "

The witch lets out an uncertain laugh, that's a… rather dark way to put it. Lily keeps silent for a while, but it's obvious she still has something to say, so Marisa waits patiently.

-" _I was about to do it, you know?_ " -She finally starts- " _To throw the bottle of sap at you and let the wasps loose. If not for the Mysterious Heroine X…_ "

-" _Mysterious…? Oh! You mean N…_ " -She stops herself before saying too much, her friend doesn't really enjoy publicity -" _Nevermind, I mean she's an old friend, a perk that comes with being in my team (ze)!_ "

-" _How can you joke about it?_ " -The guilty outburst catches Marisa by surprise, it's _her fault_ all this happened, why's the girl blaming herself?- " _I could've hurt you really bad!_ "

-" _Oh, please, you could've tried (ze)!_ " -No, that wasn't what she wanted to say- " _Look, the case is… I'm sorry for not being a leader you can trust. All this could've been avoided if I had managed to make you felt more comfortable about confiding your worries._ "

-" _That didn't… I was so worried, caught between the bullying and the possibility of getting you expelled, and didn't want to get you guys worried and…_ " -She deflates, looking at the ground- " _I guess the situation overwhelmed me, I'm sorry._ "

-" _Well, maybe that's why I'm the leader and no you (ze)!_ " -She says, gently holding her chin up so they can look at each other- " _Why don't you let your problems try to overwhelm all of us instead? If you trust me with them next time, we'll tackle them together!_ "

For a while, Lily simply stares, and Marisa has to fight back a blush. This is so embarrassing… She always ends up spouting cheesy lines when she gets nervous. Finally, the little girl nods once, but by then Marisa desperately needs to get away before making a fool out of herself, so she simply nods back and turns around, waving one hand as she leaves.

That's why she doesn't notice the entranced look in Lily's eyes, nor the blush in her cheeks as she watches her leave, not looking away for a while, even after she disappears into the crowd.

* * *

 **Omake: Lily and Cardin's everyday life**

-" _Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while..._ " -Professor Goodwitch interrupts her speech to take a look around- " _Where are miss White and mister Winchester?_ "

-" _Well… they went..._ " -Sky tries to make an excuse, unsure of what to say- " _Back to the bullhead!_ "

Goodwitch squints her eyes dangerously, but Marisa intercedes before she can lash out.

-" _Yeah! Cardin wasn't feeling well, Lily went with him to make sure everything was alright!_ "

The lie is painfully obvious, but there's something in the nervous smiles of the students that makes her remember her own years in the academy. Yeah, she's had to make this kind of excuses for her friends too, and Lily is a good girl, things won't get out of hand. This once, just this once, she'll let it slip.

-"I see" -She answers, not a hint of her inner thoughts reflected in her icy stare- " _Let's keep moving then, there's no need to stop the whole team for what's most likely a motion sickness._ "

[...]

Some distance from there, Cardin Winchester, the school bully sits in a flower-patterned blanket, arms and legs crossed, trying his darndest best to not look like a wipped pussy dragged into a picnick by her girlfriend.

-" _I can't believe you made me agree to this._ "

Lily just smiles and serves him a cup of tea.

* * *

 **Wow, Marisa, you player, you did it again! The 'Marisa inadvertently sets all the young maidens hearts aflame' is one of the fan facts I enjoy the most. But honestly, I didn't expect her to shake Lily's until it actually happened! Literally! The last lines weren't intended until ten seconds before I wrote them.**

 **The interaction between Koakuma-sempai and Lily was written a long time ago, but in the end, I was about to leave it out. As the plot evolved and convoluted inside my head, it made less and less sense no matter how I patched it. Still, I really liked the scene, so ended up rewriting it completely.**

 **Dear me, this almost turns into a long arc about a blackmailed Lily… I mean, MAPL doesn't know each other that well yet. If not for the Mysterious Heroine X (I think I've made pretty obvious who it is, but I won't spoil the surprise in case I'm wrong) she could've been trapped in that situation for a while until someone figured what was going on...**

 **For a while, this chapter kept trying to get itself in the NSFW zone in spite of my best efforts. Different sex + blackmail, especially with teenagers involved, always equal to that one M rated thing in my mind, keeping everything T rated has been a true display of willpower. Willpower, I say!**

 **Actually… what would've happened if Cardin had used the info to blackmail Pyrrha instead of Jaune? Mmmm… that idea could work really well for an M rated one-shot, maybe even a series…. Good heavens, I'm sick...**


	9. The Stray (1)

**Konnichiwa, konnichiwa, Planeshunter desu! There's not much for a forewerd today, so let's get into the story quickly, shall we?**

* * *

It's been some time since MAPL was formed and, in spite of everything, Patchouli can't really find herself spiting her time spent with them. Her companions are a bit loud, but as long as they don't try to drag her out of her books. She's happy to let it go

To be honest, she still has some reserves about her leader. Both Lily and Alice have clear records that are easy to track and check, but Marisa's past is proving to be… slippery. That's something she can't accept without a certain deal of bitterness. She's a researcher, after all, her failures till now are a stain in her pride.

-" _Well, If I had to take one, guess It'll be the hydrangea..._ "

They've been discussing about flowers for quite a while, and she's been half-listening to their conversation, since Lily seems so enthusiastic about it. Personally, flowers are just infernal devices designed to worsen her asthma, poisoning the air with their invisible miasma. But Marisa's odd choice makes her mark the page she was in and close the book.

-" _That's… an interesting choice_ " -She starts, questioningly raising a brow. It's a pretty unremarkable flower, that wouldn't usually come first, even if one were to like it. Also, the hydrangea stands for insincerity and cold-heartedness in the language of flowers- " _Care to elaborate?_ "

-" _Oh? So ya were interested after all (ze)!_ " -She teases before getting reflexive about it- " _It's just… ya know… It's such an unremarkable flower, but it still tries her hardest. I kinda feel like rooting for her (ze)! How about you? Lemme guess… Patchouli?_ "

-" _Please…_ " -She doesn't need to bother feigning her disdain. Being named after a plant causes this kind of assumptions often enough for her to be bored about the matter- " _I'll let you know it's not a matter of names. Nightshade (Truth) is my favorite, no doubt._ "

-" _I like White Lilies(Purity)!_ "

-" _Do you even know what that means?!_ "

Alice's retort catches everyone by surprise, until the moment she spoke up, she'd shown even less interest in the matter than herself.

-" _Oho?_ " -She can't hide a malicious smile as the puppeteer girl blushes, visibly trying to shrink before the gaze of her teammates- " _Didn't knew you could understand the language of flowers, Alice.. What's your favorite then?_ "

The girl has something just too... _Teasable_ about herself. Is no surprise that Marisa's always picking on her.

-" _Buh...! The…! I mean…_ " -After some stuttering, she finally hides behind her dolls- " _That's for kids! I only looked it up because this children wanted to pick their own flowers!_ "

-" _Shanghai and Hourai have favorite flowers?_ " -Lily almost falls from her bunk bed in her hurry to face the two dolls- " _Wanna know!_ "

As always, the effusive sincerity of the little girl completely disarms Alice. That's how it should be. Being mean to such pure girl takes a heart rotten as rotten as Cardin's after all.

-" _Well… Shanghai likes Chervil(Sincerity), and Hourai is more inclined for Maple(Reserve)_ "

-" _Maple like us!_ "

The small fairy sounds delighted, but that's when Marisa, who's been eyeing her scroll for a while, intervenes.

-" _Sure, sure, those fit them real well, but what about ya, Cutie-pie?_ "

-" _I told you I don't mind those kid's matters!_ "

-" _Of course you don't, Cutie-pie. And I'm the most generous and honest girl in the world._ "

Patchouli catches herself interested in the matter. It's about knowing her teammates better, of course. Mere curiosity has nothing to do with the way both her and Lily are closing the gap with predatory eyes. She's above gossips after all. If only their leader wasn't widely smiling at the effect of her words, that excuse would've even sound believable.

 _Girls are prying_

-" _Geez! I like Red Roses(Passionate Love) alright?_ " -Her blush could guide a ship better than any lighthouse- " _Any problem with it?_ "

There's enough teasing material in that sentence to last the whole semester but, for some reason, when Patchouli spies Marisa, she finds her staring at her scroll with a dead serious expression.

-" _Oi, Bookworm_ " -She says, completely ignoring Alice (who, in spite of everything, seems a bit hurt about being ignored)- " _You mentioned the other day a book called 'The Grimm Brothers', right?_ "

-" _I did_ " -Her answer is slow, Marisa even remembering that conversation caught her completely unaware- " _An old tome of incalculable value, it's supposed to talk about the Grimm in great detail, but the few known copies were lost in the Great Fire of Atlas, more than a century ago._ "

-" _Well… a copy has appeared, it got announced just now, It'll apparently be sold in an underground auction here in Vale next week. I know the certifiers, is either the real deal or the best forgery in the world._ "

That makes all thought about flowers vanish from her mind. It has to be hers. Will she have enough money? All kind of rich fools would participate in an underground auction like this, but with so little time between the announcement and the deal some might get caught unaware. Maybe if she asks Remi for additional funds...

-" _Now you know about underground auctions?_ " -Just a little bit of resentment can be felt in Alice voice, she's still pouting about being ignored- " _Just how shady can you get?_ "

-" _Hey, not all treasures hide in the bottom of a dungeon (ze)!_ " -She answers without losing her light tone- " _A girl has to know about this short of things too!_ "

* * *

P: Remi, this could be our grand chance! It's not only the Grimm, that book is said to contain all sorts of lost knowledge about aura and semblances.

R: YOU KNOW WHAT KIND OF WEIRDOES TAKE PART IN THOSE AUCTIONS? THE BID WILL GO HIGHER THAN THE SKY BEFORE YOU EVEN REALIZE IT!

P: It'll be worth it, if only we can find a solution.

R: IT WON'T, THE SCARLET FAMILY DOES NOT POOP LIEN, PATCHE! THERE IS NO WAY WE CAN PAY FOR SOMETHING SO RARE.

P: Remi… can you please stop writing in capital? It hurts my eyes…

R: A NOBLE PERSON LIKE ME NEEDS TO SPEAK IN AN ADEQUATE WAY

P: You can't figure out how, right?

R:...

P: The button that reads 'Caps Lock'

R: Accursed machine…

P: Also, talking about poop is hardly an adequate way of speaking

R: Nevermind that, I'll cover the expenses if it doesn't triple your normal allowance, but can't afford more. The book will be useless if we have to sell the mansion to pay for it.

P: *Sigh* Thanks Remi, I'll do my best

R: I'm worried about sending you into a book auction, Patche... Try not to spend our budget before the main dish comes out...

* * *

Things aren't going well. Things aren't going well **at all**. Thinking back, she should've realized sooner that this wasn't going to work. Over the time they've been together, Marisa's learnt about the personality of her team members.

Lily gets easily excited about anything, taking her into a covert op in the middle of downtown, where a clandestine event involving large sums of money is attracting the scum from both the high and low society is a guaranteed ticket for a hyped fairy unable to hold herself.

Alice gets all thorny and defensive in awkward or unknown situations, and looks around with a challenging stare that's simply asking for trouble.

Thank Dust the Bookworm seems focused in her goal, but still she makes no effort to keep close, and the way she bears herself makes way too easy to forget about her and lose sight, especially while trying to keep tabs on the other two.

Seriously, she's supposed to be the wild one. Are all the team leaders having the same troubles? This must be how it feels to herd cats.

-" _Lily, don't touch that!_ " -She rises her hand, fast as lighting, but reaches the fairy a second too late, the harm is already done- " _I'm sorry sir, it was an accident (ze). I'll take care of the reparations (ze)._ "

As she pulls her scroll, bidding farewell to last month's savings, the corner of her eye catches a trio of lowlifes surrounding Alice. Skull Snakes, great. They're still looking for her after their last riffraff, so they'll make a scene if she tries to intervene. But she needs to do something, Alice's frown threatens with splitting her forehead in half, and her dolls are slowly unsheathing their weapons behind her.

Low on options, she detaches the dust reactor from her broom and subtly aims to a nearby stack of containers. They're labelled as flour, so they're most likely some kind of smuggled goods, hopefully not pure dust. After making sure no one will notice her, she fires of a thin laser. The boxes catch fire with ease, releasing a rancid smoke.

-" _Okay, both of ya, with me._ _ **Right now!**_ "

She grabs one girl with each hand, pulling them away. They don't dare resist. Good, for once they seem to catch a clue.

-" _Wah…_ " -Lily complains, pinching her nose- " _What's that smoke? It stinks..._ "

-" _Refrain_ " -Marisa's voice is low and full of resent- " _The drug that makes you dream. Never get close to that shit, girls, it's ruined more lives than ya can count…. Wait a minute (ze)! Where's Bookworm?_ "

-" _Right behind you_ " -Neutral as it sounds, she's tense enough for the voice to almost make her heart stop- " _You know a lot about this kind of things, o fearless leader._ "

-" _Well, ya know..._ " -Bookworm's been on her for a while and it's starting to get annoying- " _Is important to know how are things in the real world (ze)!_ "

She seems about to say more, but their arrival to the actual building of the auction distracts her. Marisa breathes with relief. It's not like she's hiding anything for the sake of hiding, she only wanted a chance to show her true self before prejudices could ruin their team. Just… she's getting far too comfortable with the lies, and hasn't really made much progress in the 'showing her true self' part. Maybe, after they're done with this deal, is time to have a long, honest chat with all of them.

[...]

-" _The bid stands in one billion lien, anyone offers more?_ "

Well that was… expected. She spares a look to her distrusting companion, the defeated expression in her face is probably the most expressive she's ever seen Bookworm since all that bullying mess with Cardin.

-" _Went broke already (ze)?_ "

The defeated look sent her way would make the onions cry

-" _For a while now... I'm sorry, Remi told me this would happen. If only I had listened to her we could've saved the wasted effort._ "

-" _Now, now, don't be that hasty (ze). It would be a shame to leave like this, right?_ " -It's her turn to smile- " _Ya signed up with the crazies team leader of the whole Beacon after all (ze)!_ "

She starts walking, activating her semblance as she steps towards the display, and the world waves. Besides a slight blur to whoever knows where to look at, she's completely invisible now. A confident grint paints her face, good ol' Hydro Camouflage has served her well in the past, but just in case she takes out her scroll and sends a message to her team with the contingency plan.

Now, she's never tried to steal in the black auction before. Even the underworld had his rules, after all, trying to stir trouble here would most likely get you more than you bargained for. That doesn't mean she's unprepared. A quick swap when the announcer takes the attention of the public and she'll be out before anyone knows what has happened.

She just needs to make sure the wood from the stairs and platform don't make any noise that can give her away and calmly take herself to the display one careful step at a time. When she reaches her target, she carefully inspects it before acting.

A wire trap. She hates wire traps, they are friggin' easy to miss, a headache to bypass, and is impossible to guess what they'll trigger. Normally she's the kind to react to the unexpected as it happens, but today she's bringing a team with her, she didn't want to have them mixed in a messup. It's a shame there's no real choice, she doesn't have the time to fiddle with pliers and counterweights today.

It's time for contingency A

* * *

 **Aaaand we'll have to wait till next week to see what's Contingency A! Funny, up till now, I got two chapters of the original series in each issue of the fic, but this time is the other way around. Also, 'The Stray' isn't merely me taking the title of the original story, but something that fits well, so well I'm kinda surprised to be honest.**

 **I mentioned at the start that I had no intention to alter the original storyline, but rather expose MAPL to the events that happened on it. Still, that means I have freedom to tell original stories in the parts of the show where JNPR didn't appear, like now. You can be sure Marisa won't stand for her team simply staying in the background training and studying like they are supposed to do!**

 **About the 'language of flowers' thing at the starting scene, please keep in mind that I'm no expert, and know nothing more that what can be found in the internet with a quick search. I'll apologise for any inaccuracy or mistake. Also, using it as reference to make yourself look smarter is highly unadvised.**

 **Turns out the request I made at work to arrange my schedule in a more favorable way changed from 'Don't worry, it won't be a problem' to 'screw you' without me noticing, so most of the free time I was supposed to have this week went to the gutter, and I'll have to compress all my plans in a single, desperate one-day struggle.**

 **Well… I'll survive and all that, but that means I don't have the time to keep digressing and must bid my farewells. Cheers guys!**

 **-Planeshunter**


	10. The Stray (2)

**Konnichiwa, Konnichiwa! Planeshunter desu!**

 **How are you guys? With today's chapter there's some important announcement, but I'll leave that for the afterword. For now, enjoy The Stray: Part 2!**

 **PD: Urgh... Please forgive any messups, this chapter is pure patchwork.**

* * *

Hourai is in position, unamusedly floating a good five feet over the crowd. Shanghai is too, sitting near the door, her red dress easily missed against the velvet carpet. She's got her Round Table ready to enforce a safety circle around her. That covers all her bases. Looking around, she checks Lily and Patchouli in position too. It's a bit depressing, to be honest.

Alice is the first to accept (even if begrudgingly so) that Marisa is better at planning. Still, no matter how trustworthy her leader's skills, she would very much prefer to be on the loop. A list with preparations to make followed by a another about how to react to different situations might be the most brilliant plan ever, that doesn't make her feel less like a tool, though.

Patchouli doesn't trust their leader completely, and doesn't make any effort to hide her suspicions. In times like this, Alice too wonders what's hidden under that confident grin and bright eyes. But that's just baseless paranoia, isn't it?

As she tries to locate the slight blur that's the only hint about Marisa's position, a funny thought crosses her mind. Is this how her dolls would feel, if they had their own souls like she so often wishes for?

-" _Cutie-pie!_ " -No time for ponderings now, it seems- " _Heads up!_ "

The invisibility ends like a bursted bubble. 'Heads up' is the cue for Hourai to act, a cue she spectacularly misses, caught by what happens next. In a dash of red petals, four different shapes fly through the room in different directions at lightning speed. She's obviously intended to catch the book while the decoys and the very Marisa provide distraction, but…

 _Red roses? Like Ruby's? What's going on?_

Fortunately, a burst of wind catches the book for her, and a hand (Patchouli's) patting her shoulder reminds her what she's supposed to do. Hourai moves in to get the book as soon as the wind weakens, and both of them make her way towards the door, unnoticed amongst the panicking people trying to get away.

-" _Okay girls!_ " -Marisa is already at one of the big coloured windows, and stops only to shout the next cue before breaking it and jumping outside, Lily following close behind- "See you later!"

'See you later' means they are on their own. Does that imply trust? Or simple disregard? Now is not the time for such questions, but she'll remember. Seems like, after all, Patchouli's paranoia is contagious.

* * *

With a frantic zigzag pattern, lily tries her best to dodge everything thrown at her. And she's doing a good job, her aura is taking pretty much no damage. This is danmaku, after all, a game she's played with her friends since longer than she's even able to remember. More than seeing, she 'feels' a respite in the hail of projectiles trying to shoot her down, and turns around for a quick counterattack.

But as soon as she does, an explosion shakes the windows of the floor they just jumped from putting out of commission all the suited men firing at them from the auction room. Beside her, Marisa is freefalling with a confident grin as she blows the smoke coming out from the tool on her hand.

For a moment, she can only watch their leader nonchalantly working to reattach the mini-hakkero into her broom as more suited men appear from other windows and the hail resumes. The effect gets somewhat diminished when the engine stalls at the first try, but that's not the point.

The black and white witch remained behind, providing a more obvious target, and yet seems as unscathed as she herself. What's more, she still managed to take hold of the chance and fire back faster than her. Now she feels a bit silly about being so proud of her skills. Marisa quickly takes the lead, and she subduedly follows… for about three seconds, the time it takes her to pump her fists and put more resolve in her flight.

-" _Seems like I still got ways to go!_ "

Busy firing herself up, she doesn't notice the two silhouettes tailing them, jumping from building to building.

* * *

Patchouli can't really complain about the plan. Sure, some guards tried to stop them when they rushed out, but **everyone** was rushing out, not like the poor suited men could do much, especially after Marisa (it was her, no doubt) pretty much blew up the outer wall of the room.

As much as it irks her to admit, the plan was well-thought and kept the item safe and away from the attention. Where does all this ingenuity come from? Most of the time the girl seems like a brash idiot, and then she goes and does something like this….

Is it hidden talent, cunningly masked behind her foolish behavior? Genuine outbursts of geniality? Is she taking instructions from somewhere? Even if that's the case, she's doing all this to get that grimoire for her. Patchouli was the real fool, thinking she could acquire a copy of "Tales of the Brothers Grimm" with her own funds. The disdain with which she regarded Marisa's comprehensive planning makes her blush with embarrassment now.

She'll have to properly thank her later. But now they are reaching the meeting point and should make sure they weren't followed before joining up. They chose this park because Lily has enough plants to use her semblance if things get rough. Also, the place is easy to trap.

-" _Anyone following us?_ "

-" _I have trap-wired all the path behind us_ " -Alice answers, her usual proud tone gets a bit humbler when she remembers what they just did and what kind of people might be after them- " _If someone manages to get close unnoticed, we wouldn't stand a chance anyway._ "

-" _Relax_ " -The plan was solid. Of course that doesn't mean stealing in the face of all Vale's underworld and some abroad was exactly a safe business, but things should be fine- " _Don't you trust our fearless leader?_ "

That came out with a bit more sarcasm that intended. She's about to try soften her remark when Marisa painfully crashes in front of them, closely followed by another figure. At first, is hard to distinguish anything in the dust cloud that ensues, but when it settles they can see Marisa sprawled on the ground, no trace of her usual grin as the business end of a katana points at her throat.

The katana is held by a young woman with white hair in a bob cut and a black ribbon of stern features, wearing a green yukata with white flowered patterns. Even with her eyes locked on the witch, she hold a shorter blade in her left hand, pointed towards them.

-" _Marisa Kirisame_ " -She lets out slowly- " _It has been months without hearing of you. I was wondering what rat hole you had disappeared into this time. But trying to steal in the black auction? Looks like you've finally gone crazy._ "

-" _Yo, Youmu-chan!_ " -Marisa finally composes herself, and tries to nonchalantly wave the blade away as she smiles her answer. It doesn't move an inch- " _How's yer boss? Thought we were in good terms after last time (ze)?_ "

The familiarity of the conversation hints at some close relationship. Has Patchouli finally found a lead to Marisa's past?

-" _I would very much appreciate if you stop trying to bribe Yuyuko-sama with food_ " -The tone is serious, with some exasperation mixed in her voice- " _Also, this and that are completely different matters_."

-" _Certainly,_ " -A second stranger appears from within the trees, holding Lily by the back of her dress- " _You can't just mess around with the Black Auction like that, there'll be… consequences._ "

This second person is a rabbit faunus of long purple hair wearing a black business suit and sunglasses. She holds an Uzi, and a second one hangs on her waist. She throws the little girl near Marisa and casually places her hand on it.

-" _Oh, did I interrupt yer date?_ " -Marisa retorts with a knowing smile- " _I'm sorry, ya guys sure have it though, with all that feuding families and shit..._ "

Patchouli can only sweatdrop at the instantaneous effect of the malicious words, that shatter all attempts of both girls at looking professional in an exploding blush.

* * *

-" _We… We are not a couple!_ "

Fists behind their hips, both of then close her eyes in the cutests refusal ever. Marisa's grin widens, the reaction of this two lovebirds is as predictable as always. A short burst from Broomstar later, she and Lily have closed ranks with the others and their chasers are couching dust.

-" _I swear… this NEVER gets old!_ " -She fixes her hat, taking note on how the embarrassment turns into anger and both ready their weapons- " _Shame I can't play with you guys today. Lily!_ "

-" _Leave it to me!_ "

Right before the assailants can regain their bearings, the floor explodes in a sea of thorny vines, that quickly surround them. Youmu manages to cut down some of the vines, but in the end her arms get trapped. They should be nicely tied and ready for delivery now. Even then, you never know with this two, is best to put land in between before they do something crazy.

-"Did we get them?"

Of course, Lily had to ask the forbidden question. Even if all the branches make it hard to tell for sure, they seem to be struggling. Marisa decides to take it as a good sign. Once they get free, things will get serious, so this should be the chance flee.

-" _Nevermind them!_ " -She grabs the fairy's hand and starts running- " _Cutie-pie, Bookworm! Let's scram!_ "

 ***BANG***

The loud sound of what seems like a high-caliber sniper rifle. Did that gun freak Reisen modify her weapons again, she's never had such firepower in the past…Did she hit anyone? Nevermind aura, such a shot taken by surprise can be a real problem

 ***Looks back***

Bookworm jumped in the way of the shot. Damn, talk about crazy. Even if she had time to react, that'll hurt like a bitch. Only an aura master could completely deflect something like that, a huntress-in-training like her... That was reckless as hell.

 ***Realization***

No, Bookworm can't use her aura for protection, she said so herself.

 ***Worry***

Is she alright? Where was she shot? Oh, Dust, this is serious, a bad hit could kill her for real. She turns around, intending to catch her fall and give her a ride.

 ***A spring of blo… wait, gold?***

No, it's not gold, just glowing papers. Thoughts of relief and curiosity get overwhelmed by pure wonder. In a daze, she reaches for one of the papers, the page of a book. Glowing pages are flowing from Patchouli for some reason and they are… beautiful.

-" _Earth and Metal Dust: Emerald Megalopolis._ "

-" _Wha…?_ "

Her reverie ends when, with a ground shake, numerous green walls surge around their attackers. Cutie-pie tops it off throwing an exploding doll inside. That might be enough to make a normal pursuer think twice, but this two are fanatics. What's more, neither one is willing to look bad in front of the other.

-" _Let's go_ " -After staring at the wall for an instant, Alice is the first to resume their flight- " _I didn't get them._ "

Relief and rage well up inside Marisa, perhaps with a bit of embarrassment. Of course, she's glad nothing major happened, but worrying over nothing feels… really irritating. She getting dumbified by what's obviously a semblance didn't really help her self-esteem. Without saying a word, she resumes her escape, barely noticing the paper she caught before is still in her hand.

As she has to slow Broomstar to a pace the others can keep and Alice is a way better lookout than her anyway, she can afford to take a look….

" _After Sakuya helps me down the car, I spy around without raising my head too much. It's my first time at the beach after all, I'm a bit excited. There's a nice breeze around us, and the sound of the waves is truly soothing. On the other hand, the sun is too strong in my eyes, and there's something in the air that makes me feel itchy all over. But Remi and Flan seem really excited, and I'm not going to become a party pooper._

 _It's so rare to see both of them smiling lately... I guess they are still thinking about that incident. Remi is a worrywart at the bottom, so it doesn't really come as a surprise, Flan on the other side... She must have been feeling really guilty about the whole [...]_ "

The page burns in a heatless flame, disappearing between her fingers before she can finish reading it.

-" _What was it about?_ "

The Bookworm tries her best to keep a neutral face, but there's a hint of worry she can't hide. Not from this treasure hunter, at least.

-" _Just something about going to the beach for the first time (ze)_ " -Before continuing, she casts a questioning glance towards Cutie-pie, she quickly shakes her head. Seems like Reisen and Youmu retreated for good. Good, she's about to ask some delicate questions, it won't do to be ambushed by those psychos now- " _That was obviously semblance-y. Anything to do with how you took a bullet between the eyes like it was nothing (ze)?_ "

-" _Yeah!_ " -Lily intervenes, puffing her cheeks- " _You said your aura wasn't suitable for defense, that gave me a good scare!_ "

-" _My aura is NOT suitable for defense_ " -The emphasis in the negative is resentful- " _It couldn't deflect even a snowball. That's why, whether I want or not, every time I take a direct hit my semblance activates._ "

-" _And those pages?_ " -The explanation is pretty much what Marisa was expecting to hear, that means...- " _Are they..._ "

-" _Unmoving Library absorbs any and all cynetic force used against me, but doing so comes with a price_ " -She shakes her head, staring at her feet. After remaining silent for a while, right when Marisa was about to forget the conversation, she continues- " _For most, the power to block incoming damage automatically is worth any cost and yet, for a seeker of knowledge like me, this semblance is the worst curse. Those pages were memories, shards of a past that I've now lost forever._ "

Marisa gulps with difficulty. That's one mean semblance for sure. Makes one wonder if all that obsessive reading isn't just an attempt to protect the really precious memories somewhere safe amongst that swamp of information.

* * *

 **You guys have no idea how hard I had to resist making a "do a barrel roll" in the scene with Lily and Marisa… And how much I struggled to deliver the Patche being shot scene. Goddamnit, I had to crawl through every sentence, only to immediately delete it back. I can't even remember how many formats I tried. Even now, I'm not completely happy with the results but… that scene alone has taken a good part of this last weeks. Seems like I got nothing better to offer '**

 **Also, I had a good joke about them trying to do combined attacks… that in the end made no sense and had to be removed. Shame, I worked so hard in that for nothing…**

 **Also, You might've not noticed the delay in this chapter, cuz my schedules have been kinda hectic lately, but the chapter was intended for last monday. Truth is… in spite of all my boasting about "never stopping writing" or not "letting my job get in the way", something even more fearsome appeared on the horizon eating away my hard-earned free time: Preparing tests to get a better job**

 **To not leave things too in the air, and taking advantage of where we stand right now, I plan to go on a hiatus after finishing Volume 1 with next chapter, "Black and White". Most likely till November, can't say for sure yet. I can't make promises about when said chapter will be published either, but I'll do my best.**

 **That said, till here we get today, folks! See you around next time!**

 **-Planeshunter**


	11. Black and White

**Konnichiwa, konnichiwa, Planeshunter here!**

 **We finally end this first arc! Feeling somewhat embarrassed with the quality of my last chapters I've gone the extra mile to make this one enjoyable, but in the end, only you guys can decide about my success!**

 **Now, without further ado: Black and White** **始まります** **!**

* * *

The wind blows softly around the veranda, playing with Marisa's hair and forcing her to hold her hat. Alice would've no doubt pointed out how beautiful her golden mane would look, if she bothered taking care of it, Patchouli on the other hand, barely pays any attention.

She's not here to admire her leader. And if she was being her normal self, she'd board the matter with her no-nonsense attitude and be done with it as fast as possible. Instead, she stands here, halfway hoping her presence will be noticed, as she has no idea about how exactly to go about this. That's how unnecessary thoughts have wandered in. There's something they need to talk about, words of gratitude to be said, and bad news to be delivered.

-" _You really put a lot of effort into this_ " -She finally drops, still unsure of what she should say- " _you have my thanks._ "

-" _Yer the one who took one for the group (ze),_ " -The witch turns her head, a casual smirk in her lips- " _ain't ya?_ "

The answer has been too natural. Neither a jerk nor any other display of surprise on her part. The accursed girl has been aware of her presence the whole time, but allowed her to stand there like a fool. She snaps the rest of the information before realising what she's doing.

-" _The Grimoire was a counterfeit, though._ " -Marisa doesn't deserve her harsh words and she's overreacting. Knowing it only makes her more frustrated- " _It is a **good** counterfeit, but this 'The Grimm Brothers' doesn't really say anything useful._ "

-" _Hmmm… the certifiers are trustworthy, tho_ " -Is she in deep thought about the matter? Or just trying to hide her disappointment? You can never tell with Marisa- " _Are ya sure that's not the real one after all? Maybe all that 'incalculable value' thing was just crap (ze)_ "

That had crossed her mind at first too. It's not uncommon for tales to deform reality after all, and no copy of the book remains to say the contents of the tome, pretentious as they were, made no sense upon closer inspection. It was not a matter of being well-known information, but rather a wall of text purposefully obscure that didn't really add any new knowledge or perspective.

-" _If this book is a real copy, Proffessor Port is an attractive and gallant middle-aged man. Truly, it makes me wonder wonder what kind of 'experts' approved of it._ "

-" _Hey they're s'pposed ta be the best (ze)!_ " -Marisa defends- " _How was I s'pposed ta know?_ "

-" _Don't dwell on it_ " -it's actually kind of comforting, seeing their leader so worked up for her sake- " _It's the intention what counts._ "

-" _Thanks, I guess. But girl, my pride as a treasure hunter hurts!_ " -She keeps protesting, a bit softer now- " _I mean, even Reisen and Youmu tried to get it back! That pretty much seals the whole deal!_ "

-" _Oh, yes, those two… You never told us how did you get to know them._ "

-" _We just have some common friends (ze)!_ "

Patchouli's eyes squint slightly. Excuses, of course. She wasn't really expecting any kind of guilt-ridden confession, but a girl can hope. Those two made her lose something, after all, and it all turned up to be for nothing.

That's not what she's here for, she only wants to say thanks, and should leave before losing her cool. There'll be more than enough time to ask questions later, after she's had some time to think things through. Instead of following her own advice though, she finds herself stubbornly planting her feet, ready to push the issue. Is it really so bad to feel a bit frustrated about the whole deal? To act a bit emotional for once?

-" _You aren't telling me everything._ "

-" _I ain't telling no one everything (ze)!_ " -Even if the answer is unexpected, and the words harsh, the tone is surprisingly light, Marisa isn't trying to push her away- " _But neither are ya, right?_ "

-" _I have told you more than enough!_ "

More than enough, really. Even now, she can't understand why she opened up like that after the shoot. Her semblance is a very personal matter, one that she doesn't feel comfortable sharing it. It must have been the shock of losing memories that made her lower her guard. Even then, she wouldn't have babbled like that to just any stranger. For Dust's sake, she only wanted to be done with the four years of training and back home!

At least, those were her thoughts when she left the Scarlet Mansion. At some point she changed her mind without even realising. When was the last time she honestly thought about her near future as a chore? Was it when MAPL began bonding together? As soon as it was formed? Or maybe even sooner? She doesn't remember ever thinking about Lily as something to 'put up with' at any point.

-" _Ex-friggin'-actly!_ " -Deep in thought, she had forgotten Marisa's presence, who's now wearing a victory smile- " _We all have our little secrets, Bookworm. And I don't think that means ya don't care._ "

Their black and white leader turns towards the landscape once more, ending the conversation. And Patchouli finds herself without words to counter. She does have secrets indeed, and that doesn't mean she doesn't care.

Trust, she realizes. That's what she's asking for, while refusing to give it herself. A defeated sigh leaves her lips as she makes her way back to their room. Maybe, just this once, she can let it slip after all.

* * *

N: _You are wading dangerous waters, Marisa._

* * *

 _-Darkness-_

Performance is truth, her art bears no lies

 _-Breathe-_

Truth should be shared, fear has no place

 _-Breathe-_

There was a time for hiding, there is time for light

 _-Breathe-_

There's no public, she performs for her friends

….

Friends

-Slam!-

-" _I'm home!_ " -Marisa's entrance holds enough energy to blow up a tank, and almost gives her a heart attack- " _Oh? Only you here, Cutie-pie?_ "

Talk about the devil. It only takes one to try and open up for the scoundrel to interrupt her thoughts. She really should throw something at her, but after the beds episode Professor Goodwitch made very clear her thoughts about that. The mere memory is enough to make her shiver.

-" _Marisa._ "

-" _The one and only (ze)_ " -Of course, her cold tone is wasted in the girl, who simply keeps up at her own pace- " _I just found Bookworm outside the library. crazy, huh?_ "

A familiar tug in her clothes stops her an instant short of shouting her exasperation, Shanghai is shaking her head, and even Hourai looks concerned. That's right, she cannot get herself dragged into inconsequential bickering again, she's trying to have a heart-to-heart conversation.

-" _Marisa, can you shut up and listen for once? I've got something to say._ " -Marisa shuts up alright, but there's a wary glint in her eyes, as if she's willing to jump out the window to avoid that- " _Please_. Doing this is hard enough without you fooling around."

Those words seem to finally do the trick. After a moment of hesitation, the girl puts down her hat and sits in a chair.

-" _Okay, but if you try to lecture me about anything, I'll take the door faster than you say 'chicken'._ "

Another dumb joke that almost sends her over the edge, but she settles for rolling her eyes. Whether Marisa is trying to distract her or just that dense, there's no way she'll leave the room without hearing her out first

-" _Nothing of the short. Listen, I had never… I mean, what I'm trying to say is…_ " -Now the girl turns her head sideways, like a giant, blonde turkey- " _Stop that!_ "

-" _Stop what, Cutie-pie?_ " -she answers with a taunting grin, not even bothering to feign confusion- " _I'm just listening (ze)!_ "

Alice's knuckles go white, but she doesn't lash out, not this time. In this short time, she's played into her partner's tricks too many times. This time she...

-" _No, this time you listen! Marisa, I owe you a lot, okay? Before coming to Beacon I was alone, so lonely that it hurt, but too pridef- too stupid to ask for help. You reached for me and got me somehow attached in spite of my best efforts and it was vexing and you are rude and noisy and I never thought we could really work together and sometimes I want to kill you but I'm really grateful you are here and I'm not making any sense but… I want you to know that I, I…_ "

-" _Breathe deep, Cutie-pie_ " -There's no trace of mock as she stands up to put a hand in her shoulder- " _I was just messin with ya, okay? I'll listen properly now._ "

-" _It wasn't easy, you know? Being the best. It took a lot of time training and fine-tuning my dolls, and very little to have fun with friends or… just any kind of fun, really. Once someone decided I had 'talent', my parents pushed me all the way._ "

-" _Gal, that sounds harsh, some parents ya had…_ "

-" _No. No, they… they loved me, their own way. They were always there to cheer for me and reward me for my efforts. I was happy at first. Until I realised that I wouldn't be allowed to do anything else. That 'for my own good' they would push me this way whether I liked it or not._ "

-" _I can't even imagine that, figure I'd said 'screw ya' at some point and fled home._ "

-" _I thought about it sometimes, but the thing is…_ " -Alice has no idea what kind of face she's making, but judging for Marisa's reaction, is not a happy one- " _I_ liked _puppeteering, and that's an awfully expensive hobby to have. I longed for some respite, but wasn't willing to leave everything behind. Without my parents… without my sponsors support, I had no way to keep up with my passion._ "

She sighs, the end of the story is well known for anyone who bothered with newspapers. She rises a hand and ten dolls, led by Shanghai and Hourai form ranks before her. A bit dramatic, maybe, but that's her business after all.

-" _I chose this children before my freedom. Once the choice was made, I could only regret or take pride on it. And there's no way I could regret them, isn't there?_ "

-" _Dangit girl, and here I thought ya had it easy…_ " -Marisa scratches the top of her head, at a loss for words. Finally she asks- " _But why did ya tell me that precisely now?_ "

-" _Because we are partners_ " -well, that and…- " _And I have no right to ask you questions if I'm not willing to do the same, but I'd really want to know what happened back in the auction. Those girls weren't just 'treasure hunter contacts' weren't they?_ "

-" _That's nuthin' of yer…_ " -But she stops, apparently struggling with something.-" _Dang it all, Cutie-pie. First Bookworm and now you (ze). Allrite, ya gals win this time (ze). I'll call everyone here, we have to talk._ "

* * *

N: _That's better, I thought you'd never open up to them..._

* * *

M: _Come back to the room, we have to talk._

For the umptenth time, Lily reads the short message, which obstinately holds the same words. In her experience, 'we have to talk' never bodes well. That's why she's flying as slowly as her wings will take her, while recapping the last days for something she could've done wrong.

It couldn't be about Cardin, right? That problem was sorted ages ago, they get along just fine now! Maybe something about the last mission? She **did** get sidetracked a lot, maybe now that she had time to think about it Marisa was angry? Or maybe she didn't do well enough during the chase? Her leader was so much better than her… what if she thought Lily wasn't ready?

From there her thoughts go downhill. Lily is an optimistic girl, but also has an active imagination. And worry plus imagination make for a really mean combo. When she reaches the dorm, she's sure she'll get expelled.

-" _Marisa please don't be angry!_ " -She enters the room, preemptively apologizing and barely registering everybody already inside- " _I'll do my best, so please don't tell the Headmaster to kick me out of the team! I don't want to go back! Well, I do want to seem Keine-sensei and my friends again, but I really like here, so I'll try my hardest to improve. I really, really like here, and love all of you, even Alice!_ "

-" _Hey!_ "

The torrent of words finally stops at the puppeteer's retort. That's when she realizes the horrified expression in her leader's face.

-" _Et tu, Lily?_ " -Marisa ask, panic turning into incredulity- " _What's wrong with ya gals opening up today (ze)? Is it something in the water?_ "

-" _Eh? You don't want to kick me out of the team?_ "

-" _No! Of course not! I called ya all here cuz I have something to say (ze)! Stop playing doofus and listen up, I'll only say this once_ " -Everybody freezes at Marisa's words, obviously tense. And she obviously gets nervous with all the sudden attention- " _Well… Ya guys called me a scoundrel frum da start an all that, and yer not totally wrong (ze). I did grew up in da streets, y'know? But, I'm a bit more than a thug._ "

" _I had my own business. Investigation and Item retrievement for the highest bidder. Tridimensional driving and dungeon exploring were my specialties and I have a friend that's really good with info gathering. Together we made the_ Kirisame Delivery Service _. We wanted to use '_ Getbackers _', but the name was already taken. It was fun life, crazy as heck too, I've made and lost more fortunes I can keep track of._ "

-" _Why?_ " -Alice interrupts with the obvious question- " _Why did you come to beacon if that life was so good?_ "

-" _Ya see… It was fun alrite, but I didn't really had a choice. For us, it was that or the gutter (ze). That's why I jumped at the chance. Hunters are cool as heck too and, if nuthing else, I can always use this experience back in my old job. Not that I want to or anythin' (ze), ya gals are really sweet and I love it here, even if all this 'team leader' crap still feels like bull. There, I said it (ze). Hope ya girls can trust me at least in this!_ "

-" _Will your past come back to bite our asses?_ "

All gazes turn to Patche. It is an intelligent question for sure, but the timing couldn't be worse.

-" _Hard ta say…_ " -Fortunately, Marisa doesn't seem ticked off- "I try ta be a good sport, and like ta think most people back there are at least a bit fond of me (ze). Doubt anyone would go out of their way just ta get back at me."

-" _Well if they do_ " -Alice hurries to say- " _They'll have to face my children!_ "

-" _And my vines!_ "

Alice and her turn back to Patche, she even sub-ver-tip-tly nudges her with an elbow. In the end, she closes her book with a sigh.

-" _Fine… And my Elements too…_ "

[...]

Later that evening, Marisa's scroll beeps.

-" _Girls, I'm gonna take Broomstar to the piers real quick (ze). RWBY shorta got involved in sumthin' there, so I'll wanna check em out._ "

Without even waiting for an answer, she takes her broom and flies out the window. Lily hopes everything was alright, her face looked kinda dark...

* * *

N: _Are you nuts? Think it through girl! This can't end well!_

* * *

In the end, there was nothing worth worrying. There was some shooting, and a bit of a skirmish, sure. But RWBY seemed fine. She waves them off as they return to Beacon, thankful that she didn't have to make up an excuse to stay. Taking a breath, she turns around.

-" _Well, well (ze). If it isn't my favorite criminal mastermind!_ " -She greets at the white-clad figure coming out of an alley- " _How come your pint-sized psycho didn't get ya out of trouble this time (ze)?_ "

-" _Very funny. Want to know what's not fun? Getting your suit wrinkled because the children can't keep their curfew_ " -Roman Torchwick steps out to the light, ostensibly smoothing out his clothes- " _She has her own homework tonight. Just like you._ "

-" _Relax, old man, I got it here_ " -Marisa produces a book out of her hat- " _'The Grimm Brothers' only surviving copy anyone knows of. But why so desperate to get it? Ya sure don't strike like the bookworm type._ "

-" _It's not for me, I was just outsourcing_ " -He motions towards the book, only for Marisa to pull away- " _Do you mind?_ "

-" _I made a deal and I'm sticking to it (ze). But this is the list time, I'm on the other side now._ "

She finally offers the book, which the criminal takes and puts away without even sparing a glance. The bastard knows she keeps her contracts.

-" _But are you?_ " -Torchwick's knowing smile hits hard against her confidence. She doesn't allow her face to show it, of course, but getting your own insecurities pointed out sure hurts- " _We both know there are no sides. You are either dirty or clean._ "

With that, he leaves, still smiling. The flight back home feels anything but satisfying.

* * *

N: _Aaaaaand, you've officially fucked up. Congratulations_

M: _…_

M: _Shut up._

* * *

 **MAPL Illustration, Volume 1: Everyday Happiness is now unlocked! Check it out on the Author's profile**

* * *

 **Secrets upon secrets, Marisa really is a black and white witch! Beyond the obvious, this chapter should hint another flaw in team MAPL, one that will most likely cause problems at some point. But I won't get into specifics. Maybe is only obvious for me because I already know beforehand, wouldn't like to spoil the surprise.**

 **Hoo, boy… I've been checking my late chapters, and Marisa's manner of speech is all over the place. That's supposed to change based in her emotions, but it's hard to get the feeling right if I forget about it in half of the conversations. Lily's supposed to struggle with difficult words too, but that rule has been applied somewhat randomly (that is, whenever I remembered it). Looks like a revision of the whole season is in order before I get to the next one.**

 **Speaking of that, this is definitely a milestone. For the last months I've been trying my best to end my active works in a satisfying manner, as my new duties took away a lot of time and was (rightfully) worried about that affecting them. In the end, the only one I couldn't (didn't) finish was MAPL, and might be the one which suffered the most precisely because of that. I can only apologise.**

 **Among many other thing, I believe now that revealing Patchouli's semblance so soon was a huge mistake. Golden pages falling around and Marisa getting a glimpse of the text? That for sure. Actually explaining the workings? Heck no. Huge enough to make me want to rewrite last chapter. I won't do that tho, manning up my mistakes and trying to get the best work done with what I have is part of my creed. One thing is rewriting something for clarity or narrative quality, but changing plot-relevant details feels like cheating.**

 **Ironically, things (life) will soon change and, while the hyatus (nevermind spelling, I like it better that way) will still hold, some other works might see the light before I take those tests mentioned last time. Funny how life seems to always work desynchronised with your plans, right?**

 **Anyway, here ends Volume 1. I hope everyone liked it so far, but it would be enough if you don't throw rotten eggs at me, really. See you next time!**

 **-Planeshunter**


	12. MAPL up for adoption

Long time, hasn't it? I would love to bring good news, but... The title says everything, I'm afraid.

This last couple of years I've steadily been losing my interest in RWBY. It hasn't been any big thing, but a stream of small ones and now I can't bring myself to care anymore. I withheld this notice for as long as I thought reasonable, hoping that maybe S5 will reignite the fire or something, but I haven't even watched it. I don't suddenly hate the series or anything ugly like that, I just... don't care. At all.

That said, I'm still fond of this story and would love to see it continuing, so I'm putting MAPL up for adoption. Anyone wants to take the baton, just needs to sent me a PM. I have some drafts about where I wanted the series to go from here and I'll share it with anyone interested in continuing, but they won't be in anyway obligated to follow. It'll be their story from this point onwards and free to do as they see fit with it.

That's... that's everything, I think. Thank you for following the story until now and see you next time!

-Planeshunter


End file.
